


anachronism

by strangegoingson



Series: anachronism [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, Chuunin Exams, Fuuinjutsu, Fuuinjutsu Master Uzumaki Naruto, Major Original Character(s), Minor Character Death, Multi, No Ootsutsuki Clan, Second Shinobi War, Third Shinobi War, Time Travel, Uzumaki Naruto Raises Himself, Uzumaki Naruto was Raised by Other(s), Uzushiogakure | Hidden Eddy Village
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-10
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2020-06-26 03:34:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 55
Words: 327,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19759762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/strangegoingson/pseuds/strangegoingson
Summary: In an attempt to save a devastated future, Naruto Uzumaki travels back in time, determined to change the fate of the world.Several years in the past, on the night Uzushiogakure is to be destroyed by Kirigakure, a helpful stranger appears in front of the Uzukage.





	1. Chapter 1

Tsubasa whirled and spun, kunai flying from her fingers, and speared three ninja who had been creeping up behind her, one in the head, one in the eye, and one in the neck. Just as quickly as they fell, they were replaced with three more ninja, each one already forming hand seals. 

“Damn!” she swore, blinking salty sweat out of her eyes. “Did Kiri send their whole village?” 

“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Tsubame, identical to her in every way from his Uzumaki red hair to his sea blue eyes, said grimly as he took out two ninja with a rush of water, leaving another two stunned. Tsubasa darted forward to slap seals on their foreheads, and activated them not even a second later. The two ninja crumpled to the floor, and Tsubasa disregarded them. She turned, Tsubame’s name on her lips, only to freeze as she spotted him, clashing swords with a Kiri nin as another crept up behind him.

Too far—she wouldn’t make it in time. 

She reached for a kunai, and found her pouch empty. Tsubame turned, reacting to the presence behind him, too late. 

A swirl of leaves, the clash of metal on metal. She blinked, and Tsubame was on the ground, but not bleeding. The Kiri nin’s head rolled to a stop at her feet.

A man with blond hair stabbed the remaining ninja, and then turned to her. “Got here in time!” he declared cheerfully, as if a man’s decapitated body wasn’t lying at his feet. “Uzukage-sama?” 

She nodded, even as she eyed him. Blond hair and blue eyes weren’t an unusual combination in Uzushio, but none of her people looked quite like this man. She looked for any sign of a forehead protector or other village identifier, and found nothing. “That’s right.” 

“You look like you could do with some help,” he said with an easy grin. 

Despite the lack of identifier, she could tell easily that he was a ninja, and what was more, he’d saved her precious younger brother and that said more than he knew. “Uzushio welcomes your aid,” she said. 

“Great!” he said, and brought his hands together in a seal. “Shadow clone jutsu!” 

A veritable army of clones appeared, so many that even an Uzumaki would have probably killed themselves doing it. They let out a battle cry and rushed deeper into the village, racing over the roofs and down the streets, leaving Tsubasa and Tsubame blinking at each other. 

“Did that happen, or is the chakra exhaustion making me hallucinate?” she asked. 

Tsubame tossed her a few soldier pills and the weapons pouch he’d pilfered from one of the fallen ninja. “No time to worry about it now. You good to go?” 

She popped the pill and cracked her knuckles. “Try to keep up, shrimp. Dinner for a week says I can get more Kiri nin than you.” 

Tsubame smirked at her. “Better get your wallet ready. Let’s go!” 

Tsubame dashed off into the city, vanishing and then reappearing to slam kunai into the eyes of two approaching shinobi. Tsubasa laughed and followed, seals and kunai at the ready.

The sun had risen by the time one of her ANBU appeared behind her. “Uzukage-sama, Kiri is retreating.” 

She slapped a seal onto the forehead of a Kiri nin. He fell, leaving the street relatively peaceful for the moment. Overhead, the Kiri nin leapt from building to building, more often than not falling prey to traps, weapons, and the occasional jutsu from those with enough chakra left. She heard whooping from triumphant genin in the distance, and couldn’t help but smile despite her bone-deep exhaustion. 

“Report,” she ordered as she retrieved her kunai.

“Several streets have taken damage, particularly in areas frequented by shinobi, although there have been heavy casualties in the civilian sectors as well. Our barrier seals have been completely destroyed. Our forces suffered heavy casualties, but we made it through. The jounin and chuunin took the brunt of it, but the majority of the genin were in the shelters with the civilians. Some of those areas were targeted, but most of the attacks were averted. I can only imagine what would have happened if not for our backup. I didn’t see them myself, but I heard stories. Did Konoha send them?” 

She and Tsubame exchanged a glance. “Them? I was only aware of one.” 

“I only sensed the one,” Tsubame confirmed. 

All three of them tensed and readied their weapons as someone flickered into the space between them. Their blond ally blinked at them before sheepishly grinning and holding out two Kiri jounin as if giving up a peace offering.

“Caught these guys organizing the retreat. They seemed to be in charge; you could probably get some information from them,” he said. 

Tsubasa signaled the ANBU, who quickly restrained the two ninja and then vanished with them. Even as he left, however, she sensed three more ANBU approaching. “Come with us,” she said, gesturing to the stranger. “We can talk in my office. If it’s still standing.” 

Her office, only a few minutes away, was missing a wall but otherwise none the worse for wear. Tsubasa put her Uzukage robes on over her standard shinobi armor and then placed the hat on her head before taking a seat at her desk and facing the stranger. 

“Now, explain how and why you came here,” she said. “I assume you have a name.” 

The blond sheepishly ruffled the back of his hair. “Yeah . . . Namikaze. Narumi Namikaze.” 

“You feel like an Uzumaki,” Tsubame said from beside her. “Uzumaki chakra is quite distinctive, if you know what to look for.” 

“Yeah, my dad was a Namikaze, but my mom was an Uzumaki,” Narumi said. “That’s what I’ve been told, at least. I never actually knew them.” 

“What village were you raised in, then?” she asked. Not Konoha, most likely. They would have been told if an Uzumaki child, either abandoned or an orphan, was alone in the village. Or so she liked to think, anyways. She knew all too well that even the closest allies kept secrets from each other. 

“No village,” he said. “My sensei taught me everything I know, but he didn’t belong to a village, either.” 

A shinobi without a village, who just so happened to know the Shadow Clone Jutsu, Konoha’s specialty, and was so powerful that he should have at least been in the bingo book? Either he was lying, or his sensei had been a missing-nin, most likely from Konoha. 

“And where is your sensei now?” she asked. 

There, in his eyes, a brief flicker of something—grief? “Dead,” he said. “He died a few years ago.” 

She steepled her hands in front of her and narrowed her eyes at him. “Why did you come to Uzushio?” she asked. “Given your age, I doubt it was to locate your family, or you would have come years ago.” 

Narumi shrugged. “It’s hard to miss pretty much an entire shinobi village headed out to battle. I was traveling through Kiri at the time and caught wind of what was going on, and decided to help Uzushio.” 

She couldn’t detect any lies from him, but at the same time, it seemed incredibly convenient. “What are your plans from here on out?” 

Narumi rubbed at his nose sheepishly. “I was hoping you might have room for another shinobi?” 

Tsubasa held in a sigh and exchanged a glance with Tsubame. Tsubame nodded once, and she looked back at Narumi. “Tsubame will take you to torture and interrogation, where you will go through the standard procedure for joining the village. Any wounds you have will be treated there as well. Cooperate, and you should have no problems.” _If you are telling the truth,_ her eyes silently told him. 

The young man just grinned at her, as if she had informed him that they just so happened to have an open position for Jounin Commander and a vacant mansion for sale, and he was welcome to them both. “Sure thing, Uzukage-sama. Lead the way!” 

Tsubame left, Narumi behind him, and two silent ANBU tailing them both. Tsubasa sighed and glanced out through the space where there had once been a wall, surveying the collapsed canals and bridges, the destroyed houses, and the shinobi, most of them genin who had been spared the worst of the battle, clearing the dead from the street. Tsubame appeared in the street below, and Tsubasa watched as he marched Narumi off towards T&I. She could only hope that she had made the right decision. 

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, right?

***

Two months. 

Two long, dull months spent in a small room in T&I, his only visitors the two interrogators who had been assigned to his case, the shinobi that brought him his meals, and, on rare occasions, Tsubame. 

Really, it was sort of relaxing, compared to what he’d been through before activating the seal that had sent him back in time. 

Narumi Namikaze, who had once been called Naruto Uzumaki, grinned broadly as he stretch his hands up towards the sky. 

Two months, and he was finally free. 

“Don’t look too excited,” Tsubame said sternly. “You’re still on probation for the next year. That means—” 

“Limited access to files and facilities, regular meetings with my T&I buddies, no S-rank missions and A-ranks only in extreme circumstances. I know, I know,” Narumi said, waving off the glare with ease. 

Tsubame set off towards the administrative center, where the Uzukage’s office was located, and Narumi followed. “Unfortunately, due to the current political situation, we are in an eternal state of ‘extreme circumstances,’” Tsubame said tersely. “As such, you will accompany me on an A-rank mission to Konoha. The Uzukage will explain your duties in further detail.” 

Without another word, he took to the rooftop, cutting across the village. Narumi followed him, waving at the genin working at repairing the village as he ran. Those that recognized him from the attack waved back, while others eyed him curiously, and some stared at him warily. He couldn’t help but smile as he took in the white houses with the colorful roofs that rose from the water. He was only just seeing Uzushio for real, and he loved it already, from the salty sea breeze to the red-haired children running through the narrow streets and along the canals. 

“Namikaze!” Tsubame barked. “This way.” 

“Coming, coming,” he said, turning to follow the red-haired man. He wondered, idly, what had become of him in the time he had left behind. Killed, most likely, along with most of the others in Uzushio. 

He couldn’t help but grin. He’d done it. He’d saved Uzushio, even the Uzukage, and the Uzumaki. 

He jolted back to attention as someone cleared their throat loudly, and found himself standing in front of the Uzukage. She looked much as he recalled from a few months ago, still red-haired and blue eyed, still almost identical to her brother, still dead tired. 

“Narumi Namikaze,” she said, and he realized that she was holding out a navy blue flak jacket and an Uzushio forehead protector. “Do you swear, on your life and the lives of your ancestors, to protect Uzushiogakure and her citizens, to obey the word of your Uzukage, and to serve them until your dying day?” 

“I do,” he heard himself say.

“Then,” she said, as she placed the items into his hands, “I hereby name you a chuunin of Uzushiogakure, to be promoted to jounin upon the end of your probation. Welcome to Uzushiogakure, Namikaze.” 

He slid into the flak jacket and zipped it up. It was heavier and thicker than the ones from his time, but still comfortingly familiar. He tied the forehead protector around his head, adjusting his hair slightly as he did. “Thank you, Uzukage-sama. I heard you had a mission for me?” 

“Yes,” she said, producing a scroll from her desk. “You will be acting as guard detail as Tsubame travels to Konoha on a diplomatic mission, along with two ANBU. I expect you to bring him home safely, Namikaze. You leave at dawn.” 

He nodded firmly, and tucked the scroll into his standard-issue belt to read later. “Yes ma’am.” 

He turned to leave only to pause and turn around sheepishly. “Oh, and, uh, is there anywhere I can live? I didn’t really bring much money with me, ya know. . .” 

Tsubasa sighed. “Get one of the chuunin outside to show you to the barracks. We’ll find something more suitable once our rebuilding is finished. Have him take you to the armory, as well,” she added. 

Narumi left Tsubame and Tsubasa to their conversation, well aware that they were probably going to discuss him. Really, it wasn’t a bad idea—stick him with the Uzukage’s brother and a couple of ANBU to keep an eye on him, and send him somewhere he couldn’t easily cause problems. If he’d actually been trying to sabotage Uzushio, his efforts would have been stymied for some time, given the amount of surveillance he would be under from both his teammates and Konoha. Not to mention that Konoha had the Yamanaka on hand. 

He stopped in front of the Hokage’s desk, manned by two chuunin, one with red hair and one with teal. “Uzukage-sama said to ask one of you to take me to the armory and the barracks?” 

The two took one look at him and immediately pressed their heads together, whispering furiously and making quick motions under the desk. Moments later, the red-haired one cursed, while the teal-haired one smiled triumphantly and stood. “Right this way,” she said. “I’m Mizushima, by the way. Suoh Mizushima. My partner back there was Hachiro Uzumaki. And yes, he really is the eighth son of his family. He has two younger sisters, too! His family is productive even for the Uzumaki. They’re the largest clan in Uzushio, of course. The Mizushima clan is the second biggest,” she added proudly. “I’m not talking too much, am I?” 

He shook his head. Information on Uzushio had been nearly nonexistent in the future, and they hadn’t really been eager to tell him anything in T&I. “Go ahead. I’d love to hear more.” 

Suoh beamed and clapped her hands together. “Great!” she chirped. “Now, I’m sure you know that the Uzumaki are brilliant at fuinjutsu, because everybody knows that. But what you need to know about my clan stems from our origin as glass-makers . . .” 

By the time they reached the armory, he knew more than he was sure he’d ever need to know about the history of the Mizushima clan, from their skill at manipulating glass, which they eventually turned towards a unique type of weapon-crafting, to their fine-tuned Katon jutsu, which while not as large or explosive as Uchiha jutsu, were capable of reaching extreme temperatures. 

He was actually mildly relieved when she finally announced, “And here are the barracks! They’re a bit crowded at the moment, seeing as a lot of people’s houses were destroyed in the attack and a bunch of others gave up their houses for civilians with nowhere else to go, but we should be able to find someplace for you.” 

Narumi stared at the facilities. The barracks weren’t, as he had expected, a large building or dormitory, or even an apartment building. They were, rather, a series of boats strung together at the edge of the island. Each boat was large enough to house five to ten people, maybe more, depending on how closely they were willing to squeeze together, and there were at least ten boats in total. “Boats?” 

“Boats!” Suoh said cheerfully. “Come on, I think that one has a spare hammock. One of my cousins was staying there, but he’s boarding with relatives now. The armory is that storehouse down there, by the way, but let’s get you settled first.”

She jumped on board the boat and lifted a trapdoor in the deck. “Yoohoo! Got room for one more?” 

A loud groan emanated from the depths of the boat. “Not another! We just got rid of one,” someone grumbled. A shinobi with scars criss-crossing his face shuffled into view, glowering up at them. “If I tell you we don’t have room, will you leave?” 

“Nope,” she said cheerfully, before shoving Narumi forwards. He yelped and fell through the trapdoor, but managed to land in a crouch on the wooden floorboards. “Narumi, meet barrack seven. Barrack seven, meet Narumi Namikaze. He’s related to the Uzumaki, I think?” 

“I know you,” a blond girl, sitting beside a brunet and a blue-haired boy, said. The three of them couldn’t have been more than eight or nine. “You helped us hold the shelter!” 

He squinted at them, and thought that maybe they were familiar, but he’d had so many clones running around that night that half the damn village seemed familiar. “Don’t mention it. You three were doing pretty well already.”

“The medic-nin say Toshima-sensei is going to make a full recovery thanks to you,” the blue-haired boy said, looking at Narumi with something eerily close to hero-worship. 

The blond girl nodded, looking slightly more cheerful. “Once Toshima-sensei is out of the hospital, we’re going to live with him,” she said wistfully. The three of them spoke to each other in hushed whispers.

“Hammock’s over there,” the scarred shinobi said, jerking his head towards the opposite side of the room. “Put your stuff in the bag.” 

The hammock was strung from the ceiling, across from another hammock that was already occupied by a snoring older man. There were ten hammocks in total, but someone had also laid mats underneath them, so that people could sleep beneath them as well. The mat beneath his hammock was empty at the moment, but a worn stuffed animal was resting on top of it, and one of the bags hanging from the ceiling was full of gear. He placed the spare clothing he had in the other bag and returned to Suoh, who was waiting where she’d left him. 

“Those three kids down there are a genin team,” she murmured. “Their houses were destroyed in the attack. They’ve only got their sensei and each other, now.” 

“Who sleeps underneath my hammock?” he asked her. 

She shrugged. “I don’t know. One of the others in there would, but I don’t really spend much time in the barracks. Now come on, let’s get to the armory. I do have to go back to work sometime, unfortunately.” 

The armory was being manned by a trio of genin who eagerly tripped over themselves and each other in their rush to help, grabbing kunai and shuriken and sealing supplies and anything else they thought he might find useful, while one of them painstakingly counted the items and recorded it in a ledger. The total cost was surprisingly cheap, and he was able to afford it even on the small stipend the Uzukage had given him. 

“Anything more specialized than this, and you’ll want a blacksmith,” Suoh said as the kids rushed around. “But this is a great place to get the basics, and the quality is pretty decent considering the cost. Lots of genin use it, and a fair amount of the chuunin. Jounin tend to prefer higher-end shops for their materials.” 

A girl with red hair in pigtails, perhaps about ten years old, handed him the pouches full of supplies. “Thank you for shopping at the armory!” she chirped. “And thanks for saving my big brother during the attack!” 

“Thank you!” the other two chorused. 

“Well, that concludes our little tour,” Suoh declared as they left. “Welcome to Uzushio, Namikaze. I look forward to working with you.” 

“You too,” he said. With a final wave, Suoh darted off over the gold, red, and blue roofs of Uzushio, leaving him to board the ship and drop down into the barracks. The sleeping shinobi had left while he was at the armory, but two chuunin had taken places on mats on the floor, and were playing an odd game with dango sticks while the three genin watched curiously. The trio nudged each other as he walked through the boat, and stared as he sorted through his supplies. 

He settled down to sleep after a dinner of ration bars, knowing he would have to wake up early and that what sleep he would get was likely to be fitful and restless. In a way, sharing a room with so many strangers was a relief—he woke up whenever someone entered or left or started crying, so that he didn’t have time to have any nightmares of his own, even if he was still drowsy by the time the sun rose. 

As he rolled out of the hammock, he nearly stepped on a small hand, and in his hurry to avoid it nearly ran into the hammock next to his. The person beneath his hammock, a boy around ten years old, still wearing his chuunin vest, sleepily rolled over but didn’t wake. A few of the shinobi in the room did wake as he made his way to the exit, but that was unavoidable, considering they were all on high alert. He smiled fondly at the three genin on the far side, who had pushed their three mats together and were curled together like puppies, and leapt through the trapdoor. 

Uzushio was beautiful in the sunrise, white stucco painted orange and gold, the dark sea lightening and changing colors along with the sky. Narumi took the long route, trailing along the narrow walkways bordering the canals, picking his way through the occasional bits of rubble and construction materials, and marveling in the sheer happiness he could sense in the village, even after everything they’d been through. 

Two children, laughing, darted in front of them, and he stared after them in wonder. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen happy, laughing children before coming to this time. Actually, now that he thought about it, he couldn’t remember seeing any children. Not any living ones, at least. 

He shook those thoughts from his head and ran the rest of the way, managing to reach the administration building just as the sun fully rose. Tsubame was already there, flanked by two ANBU and chatting warmly with an Uzumaki jounin and her three genin, but his smile fell away the moment he caught sight of Narumi. 

“Namikaze,” he said, glancing towards the sky. “Right on time. Let’s move. Sana, I’ll talk to you when I’m back.” 

“Of course, Tsubame-sama,” the woman said happily as she ushered her three genin, all of whom were staring at Narumi, into the building. Narumi wiggled his fingers at them, and they quickly looked away, only to sneak glances back at him. 

The ANBU fell in line behind Tsubame and Narumi as they walked to the edge of the village, where the roads and buildings faded into a beach dotted with shrubs and kunai. Narumi looked out over the deceptively calm sea, well aware of the torrential currents surging beneath the surface, ready to trap any unprepared boats or swimmers. Ninja, thankfully, didn’t have to worry about that, and the four of them easily ran out over the surface of the sea, moving so quickly the currents didn’t have time to grab hold of them and drag them under. 

“How long to Konoha?” he called over the roar of the wind. 

“At top speed, with a squad this small? Three or four days,” Tsubame said. “How’s your tree-running?” 

Narumi laughed. “I could practically do it in my sleep!” 

“You might need to,” Tsubame said slyly. 

Narumi blinked at him, startled, wondering if he was teasing, only for Tsubame to vanish between one blink and the next. “Hey!” Narumi protested, and dashed off, chasing the occasional glimpse of crimson hair he could catch through the trees. He couldn’t see the ANBU anywhere, but he assumed they were surreptitiously keeping their eyes on both him and Tsubame. 

His next glimpse of them was close to midnight, when Tsubame finally stopped and allowed Narumi to catch up. “Hmm, you are fast,” Tsubame hummed as he stretched, still standing on a branch. “I actually had to work to keep ahead of you.” 

“Oh yeah? I was barely getting started,” Narumi taunted in response. 

“Are you normally out of breath after barely getting started? You should see a medic about that,” Tsubame said. He settled down on the branch and closed his eyes, but kept his hand on his weapons pouch. “You should sleep, if you can. We’re making better pace than I expected. How are you two keeping up?” 

“Fine, Tsubame-sama,” one of the ANBU said. “We will keep watch.” 

With that, the two of them vanished again, leaving Narumi and Tsubame seated on opposite branches. “Not sleeping on the ground?” 

“You’re welcome to it, if you fancy being crushed in your sleep. We’re deep within Fire Country right now, but you never know when you’ll come across enemy troops.” 

Narumi grimaced, but resigned himself to an uncomfortable night. Not something he was unfamiliar with, all things told, and he managed to drift into a light sleep before too long, although he retained a vague sense of what was going on around him. When the ANBU alighted on the branches of the tree next to his, he awoke instantly, as did Tsubame. The two of them stretched, grimacing, trying in vain to work out the kinks that came along with sleeping in trees. Narumi peered up through the thick foliage, trying to gauge the time by the rising sun, and looked back only to find Tsubame had vanished again.

He looked into the distance, glimpsed red hair snapping in the wind, and groaned. “Oh, not this again.” 

Nevertheless, he pushed off from the branch in pursuit of Tsubame. They ran throughout the day, eating dry rations bars on the run, Narumi only guided by the occasional sighting of red hair or a painted mask. These forest were familiar, but at the same time not, having yet to experience the passage of time and the multiple battles that would change the landscape into what he knew. There wasn’t even much of a road to speak of, beyond the occasional thin, dirt track he spotted winding through the forest, and the only travelers he glimpsed were other ninja, and then only for a split second before they vanished again. 

They stopped not long after the sun had fallen. Narumi caught sight of Tsubame crouching on a branch, deep in discussion with what appeared to be two Konoha jounin, judging by their uniforms. As he approached, the two of them left again, and Tsubame ran on, but this time allowed Narumi to catch up to him. 

“We’re an hour out from Konoha,” he said. Narumi caught sight of him sliding a scroll away, but didn’t bring it up. “We’ll stick to the ground from here. Konoha gets a bit antsy when foreign shinobi run through their trees at top speed.” 

The ANBU fell into step behind them as they jumped to the ground and began running again, albeit at a much slower speed than before. More and more shinobi could be glimpsed through the trees as they approached, either watching them carefully or rushing off on missions of their own. 

The gates of Konoha appeared so suddenly he was almost startled, and only remembered to slow down when Tsubame, beside him, dropped out of his run. A full squad of chuunin was manning the gate, two on each side and one in the middle. 

“Identification and mission statement,” the one in the middle ordered, holding out a hand. 

Tsubame handed over a small booklet and the scroll he had taken out before. The chuunin looked expectantly at Narumi, who stared at him blankly for a moment. Tsubame coughed. “Namikaze, your identification.” 

“Oh,” Narumi said, and began digging through his pockets. “I have identification?” 

“Of course you do,” Tsubame said, in the tone of voice that said exactly what kind of idiot he thought Narumi was. 

“Aha!” Narumi said, digging out a similar, if much crisper, booklet. “Here you go.” 

The chuunin examined them carefully, and Narumi took the opportunity to look at them as well. They’d used his mugshot as his identification photo; somehow, he wasn’t surprised. T&I sorts had a bizarre sense of humor. 

Finally, he nodded and handed them back. “This all seems to be in order. Please go directly to the Hokage’s office.” 

One of the chuunin at the gate peeled off from the rest to escort them, just in case they had any thoughts of not going directly to the Hokage, Narumi assumed. He skimmed through the identification booklet as they walked. It was surprisingly thorough, containing everything from his name and birthday to his medical information and history. He wasn’t even entirely sure how they’d gotten some of the information in there. 

He looked up again to find that they had reached the Academy, and that the Konoha chuunin was leading them through the expansive yard to the administration section. It hadn’t changed much from his years there—the building was pretty much the same, and the old swing still hung from the tree in the front of the school, although it was much newer now. A boy with blonde, spiky hair was sitting on it, pouring over a book of some sort. Narumi craned around, trying to catch another glimpse of him, only to be sent spinning as a small, red-haired whirlwind collided with him. 

“Tsubame-nii! Are you okay? Is everyone in Uzushio okay? I heard about what happened, Uzukage-sama didn’t get hurt, did she? Did you kick their asses?” the red-haired whirlwind demanded. “Tell me, Tsubame-nii! And who’s this guy?” 

The girl whirled around, and Narumi’s breath caught in his throat. Red hair, purple eyes. Kushina Uzumaki, Academy student. 

“I’m Narumi Namikaze,” he found himself saying, before Tsubame could say anything to introduce them or the chuunin could hurry them off. 

“Eh, Namikaze?” she said, gaping at him. “Really? You gotta come with me!” 

“Kushina, wait!” Tsubame snapped, but Kushina had already grabbed Narumi’s hand and yanked him off, towards the tree where the blond boy was still sitting. 

“Hey, Namikaze!” she yelled. “Minato!” 

The boy looked up with a distinctly startled expression. “Uzumaki-san!” he yelped immediately. “It’s you!” 

“Of course it’s me, dummy,” she scoffed. “I found a relative of yours! He’s a Namikaze, too.” 

“What? A Namikaze?” Minato turned, finally, to look at Narumi. After a moment, his eyes widened, likely noticing the resemblance between the two of them. 

Narumi grinned and ruffled his hair. “So, you’re a Namikaze too? Who’d’ve thought that I would end up with such a cute little brother when I came here.” 

“Little brother?” Minato yelped. 

“Little brother!” Kushina exclaimed, looking between them with wide eyes. “Oi, Namikaze, why didn’t you tell me your older brother was so strong? Maybe you’re not as wimpy as I thought.” 

“You thought I was wimpy?” Minato said, with an expression that bore a remarkable resemblance to a scolded puppy. 

Kushina rubbed the back of her head. “Did I say that? I meant, uh . . .” 

Kushina was spared from having to think of an excuse by the reappearance of Tsubame, who appeared between them in a swirl of water. “Namikaze,” he said, his blue eyes boring into Narumi. “Need I remind you that we are on a mission?” 

“Of course not. Still, it’s not every day you find out you have family still alive,” Narumi said. 

Tsubame’s eyes slid to Minato, and he pursed his lips. “With me, Namikaze. Now.” 

Before Narumi could get a word in edgewise, he found himself being dragged away from the building. “I thought we had to go to the Hokage?” he asked. 

“Change of plans. The Hokage is busy. We’re heading directly to meet with someone else.” 

‘Someone else’ as it turned out, was a Yamanaka and a much younger and much less scarred Ibiki. They looked at him, he looked back at them, and the next thing he knew, something slapped against his neck, and the world faded away. 

***

The door opened, and three of the room’s four occupants looked up. “Ah, Hokage-sama. Jiraiya-sama,” Ibiki said. “You made it after all. We were just about to begin. Yamanaka, when you’re ready.” 

Tsubame leaned against the wall as he surveyed the small group that had gathered around Namikaze’s unconscious body. Inomi Yamanaka, to handle the primary investigation. Ibiki Morino, in case they required a more in-depth investigation. And, finally, the Hokage, Jiraiya, and himself, to observe, gather information, and draw conclusions. 

“All right,” the woman said, drawing a breath. “Just so you know, this technique will not draw out precise details and memories, more like feelings and emotions towards a given prompt, and sometimes impressions. Now, let’s begin.” 

The woman knelt by Namikaze’s head, touched her fingers to his temples, and closed her eyes. 

“First things first—is he who he says he is?” Ibiki began. 

“Narumi Namikaze,” she murmured. “It’s his name, as much as any name can belong to anybody. His parents—a man, blond, who looks like him. A Namikaze. His mother, red-haired. Uzumaki. He’s . . . happy, about something. A boy who looks like him. So small—was he that small? A son—no, a brother. Minato?” 

“An academy student here,” Tsubame said to the others. “They met before we came here. What are his intentions towards Kushina?” 

“Kushina Uzumaki,” she murmured. “Family. So small, little spitfire. He’ll keep her safe.” 

“Where did he learn what he knows?” Jiraiya asked. 

Yamanaka’s brow furrowed. “His teacher—an old man? Left his village. Powerful, but you wouldn’t think it to look at him. There’s sadness there—he died, long ago. Never got to say goodbye.” 

A missing-nin, then, as they suspected. 

“What are his intentions towards Konoha?” the Hokage asked. 

“The trees feel like home,” she murmured. “It feels familiar, but not. He likes it here already. He’ll protect her, if he can.” 

“And Uzushio? What about Uzushio, and the Uzukage?” Tsubame asked, feeling that familiar thump in his heart that came up whenever he thought of his sister in danger. 

“Uzushio,” she whispered. “It’s beautiful there. Happiness—the children are laughing. Sunlight on the ocean.” She sniffled, and he realized, suddenly, that tears were pouring down her cheeks. “I-I’m sorry, Hokage-sama.” 

“Can you continue?” Ibiki demanded. 

She took a few deep breaths and nodded. “He loves Uzushio,” she murmured. “He would die for her. The Uzukage, Tsubasa Uzumaki. Strong, beautiful, but not as much as her brother.” 

Tsubame felt his cheeks flush as Jiraiya whistled. “Let’s move on,” he suggested. 

“No, no, let’s hear more!” Jiraiya said. “Ask about Tsubame-chan. Come on now, it’s for the sake of the village.” 

He started to interrupt, but already Yamanaka was speaking. “Tsubame. Happy, smiling, but only for others, then cold and down-to-earth for him. Want to see that smile again. Wonder what his laugh is like? Red hair, like a waterfall, bet it’s soft—” 

“Okay!” Tsubame interrupted over the sound of Jiraiya’s laughter and the Hokage’s stifled chuckles. He was sure his face had to be bright red by now. “That’s enough!” 

“Oh, that was priceless! This whole thing was worth it for that. He thinks you’re pretty,” Jiraiya sing-songed. 

“Jiraiya, I can and will use you as a test subject if you don’t shut up,” he said. 

Jiraiya fell silent, but now the Hokage was chuckling, which was just unfair. He couldn’t threaten the Hokage! “Ah, to be young,” he said. “Thank you, Yamanaka-san, that will be enough. I think we can be fairly well assured that he bears no ill will to our people.” 

“He doesn’t bear ill will to much of anything, really,” Yamanaka admitted as she pulled away. “I sensed a lot of sadness, and he’s got a protective streak a mile wide, but not much hatred or malice. Except he doesn’t like venus fly traps, I think?” 

“So we have a possible hatred of plants. Oh, excellent work,” Ibiki drawled. “You’re dismissed, Yamanaka. Go clear your head. I don’t want to see you in here for the rest of the day. Uzumaki, do your thing.” 

Tsubame pulled the counter-seal to the sleep seal from his bag, and pressed it to Narumi’s forehead. A burst of chakra, and the seal sank into Narumi’s head. A moment later, his eyes opened. He blinked once, twice, and cleared his throat. Tsubame watched carefully, keeping an eye out for any potential side-effects. 

“Ah. I was just interrogated, wasn’t I?” Narumi asked, remarkably calmly. A potential side-effect, perhaps, dulling his emotions or his responses? Could be useful, something to look into. 

“Calm down, buttercup, it’s not like we yanked all your fingernails out while you were sleeping,” Ibiki said. “You’re free to go.” 

Narumi sat up and rubbed at his temples. “Ugh, my head feels like it’s been scrambled. I could sleep for a week.” 

A side-effect of the Yamanaka jutsu, or the seal? Possibly both. “It’ll wear off in time,” Tsubame said. “Come, I’ll show you to our quarters. Jiraiya, are we meeting later?” 

“Sure, sure, I have some time before I’m being sent out again,” he said. “I’ll get the gang together. Namikaze, you’re welcome to come, if you’re up for it.” 

“Me?” Namikaze asked, pointing a finger to himself.

“Who else? You’re the only Namikaze I know of besides that academy student, and we’re hardly going to invite a kid drinking. You sure Inomi-chan didn’t scramble his brains?” Jiraiya asked Ibiki, who ignored him. A completely understandable reaction—Tsubame often felt the same urge. 

“It sure feels like she did,” Narumi groaned. “Ugh, I feel like I’m going to be sick.” 

Tsubame sighed and slapped another seal on Narumi’s forehead. “Honestly, you and Jiraiya are such children. Is that better?”

Narumi opened his mouth, paused, rubbed his forehead, and then said, “Yeah, it is! Hey, I didn’t know you were a medic.” 

Jiraiya made a muffled snorting noise. Tsubame diligently ignored him. “My specialty is medical seals, but I wouldn’t call myself a true medic-nin.”

“That’s pretty cool. Is that how you put me to sleep?” Narumi asked. 

Tsubame steered him towards the door. “Yes. It’s primarily used for surgeries, but it serves other purposes as well.” 

“Like kidnapping and interrogation?” Narumi asked, shooting a sly smirk over his shoulder at Tsubame.

“Among other things,” Tsubame said smoothly. Narumi followed along just behind him as they exited the T&I building. He felt the two ANBU on the edge of his awareness the moment he left the building, although he couldn’t see them anywhere. They followed along, hidden, as he led Narumi through the village to the diplomatic quarters. Narumi stared around them with avid interest, occasionally staring at passers-by or food stalls.

“Have you ever been to a big city before, Namikaze?” he asked. 

“Hmm? Oh, yeah, a few, here and there. Not recently, though,” he said. Tsubame dodged around a trio of Uchiha children, easily recognizable by their clan insignia. Narumi stared after them, wide-eyed. Tsubame stifled a smile. Seeing him like this, gaping around at the big city, staring at one of Konoha’s most famous clans, and tripping over his own feet because he was too busy taking in the sights, made the fearsome warrior who had appeared that night to single-handedly save his village seem a little more . . . human. And rather young, actually. Before, he would have placed him in his mid-to-late twenties, but now he wasn’t so sure. 

“How old are you, Namikaze?” he asked. 

“Hm? Oh . . . twenty-ish, I think,” Narumi said thoughtfully. “I haven’t really been keeping track recently. What about you?

“I don’t believe I made any agreements for an exchange of information,” he said, making a show of stroking his chin. 

“What? Hey, I told you mine!” Narumi protested. 

Tsubame stiffened at movement out of the corner of his eye, only for Narumi to slug him on the arm and throw an arm around his shoulders to pull him close. “Come on,” he said, with a teasing glint in his eyes. “Don’t make me mess up this perfect hair of yours.” 

_Red hair, like a waterfall, bet it’s soft..._

Tsubame pulled away, hoping the blush on his cheeks wasn’t as obvious as he felt it was. “That won’t be necessary. I’m eighteen,” he said. 

“Eh? Eighteen? I thought you were way older. Isn’t eighteen a little young to be Uzukage?” he demanded. 

It took Tsubasa a moment to figure out what he meant, but once he did, he nearly laughed out loud. “Tsubasa isn’t my twin.” He took a moment to admire Narumi’s surprised face, and then added, “She’s older than me by ten years.” 

“What? No way!” Narumi exclaimed. “You’re having me on. You two look practically the same!” 

He shrugged. “Tsubasa looks young for her age. Uzumaki longevity, I suppose. Plenty of people who didn’t know us when we were young mistake us for twins, so don’t beat yourself up about it. It’s a common error.” 

“That’s a thing?” Narumi asked. 

Tsubame paused, for a moment, to stare at him. “What, common errors?” 

“No, Uzumaki longevity,” he said. “What’s that?” 

He sighed and continued walking. “You really don’t know much about our clan, do you.” 

Despite his words, Narumi’s grin only grew. He went over what he said, and realized. _Our clan,_ he’d said, accidentally including Narumi in his statement. Or, perhaps, simply including him without thinking about it. He’d meant it, he realized. Whatever else he might be, Narumi was unmistakably an Uzumaki. Chakra like theirs couldn’t be faked. 

“Uzumaki longevity,” he continued, “means that our clan tends to have long natural lives and heal quickly. That’s all, really. Some consider it a bloodline, others don’t. It varies from opinion to opinion. Haven’t you ever noticed something like that?” 

Narumi laughed and rubbed sheepishly at the back of his head. “I mean, I don’t get sick all that often? And I heal pretty quickly, I guess.” 

“It can manifest like that,” he said. “I know some people in the village who’ve never been sick a day in their lives.” 

“Huh,” Narumi said, looking out into the distance. “I had no idea it was a clan thing. I thought it was just a me thing.” 

So he really hadn’t heard much about their clan. “Do you know any fuinjutsu?” 

Narumi nodded at that, at least. “Yeah, I’ve picked up a bit here and there. Not as much as you, I bet.” 

“I’ve been learning about seals since before I could walk. Don’t worry, we’ll bring you up to speed on them,” he said. “We can’t have an Uzumaki who knows nothing about seals, after all.” 

“Nothing! Hey, I know some stuff,” Narumi protested. “I can do storage seals and explosive seals, no problem.” 

“Oh, is that all?” Tsubame teased as he ducked through the gate to the apartment complex where his sister kept an apartment for her visits to Konoha. He was familiar with it, having stayed there many times before, and easily darted up the stairs to the top floor, Narumi hot on his heels. “I was making those before I even started the academy. Come back when you’ve created your first original seal array.”

“I’ve done that too!” he declared hotly. 

“Oh, good for you! Now you’re on the same page as an Uzumaki academy student,” he said as he opened the door at the top of the stairs and stepped into a small hallway. He bit his thumb until it bled and pressed it against the door, which unlocked with a click. 

“Blood-based seal array,” he explained at Narumi’s curious look. “The door will unlock for me, my sister, or the Hokage.” 

“Not the ANBU?” Narumi asked. 

He shook his head. “They stay elsewhere, and only guard the outside.” He stepped inside, leaving his shoes at the door, and pulled out a piece of seal paper from the pouch at his waist. With his still bleeding thumb, he drew a quick seal array, which he handed to Narumi. “Put your blood in the center of that, and it will let you come and go from the apartment. I expect it back at the end of the mission.” 

Narumi bit down on his thumb with a practiced ease that spoke of experience with blood-based seals, or perhaps summoning—Narumi hadn’t disclosed any summons, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have one hidden up his sleeve—and spread his blood in the blank spot in the center of the seal. “This is pretty clever,” he said, his eyes drifting over the seal. “Way better than a key!” 

“Tsubasa designed it,” he said. “She’s the seal expert, of the two of us.” 

“Still can’t believe you aren’t twins,” Narumi muttered. 

Tsubame hid a smile. “Come on, I’ll show you where you can sleep. There’s two bedrooms.” He led the way through the small living room, which featured a couch, a table still covered in seal paper from their last visit, and few large bookshelves, and past the kitchen and dining room, to an area with four doors. “Bath and toilet,” he said, motioning to two of the doors. “The other two are bedrooms. The one on the right is yours. Now, I’d advise you get some rest—no doubt Jiraiya has a long night planned for the six of us. And if I have to suffer through it, so do you.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes about Names 
> 
> Tsubame (燕): barn swallow 
> 
> Tsubasa (翼): wing


	2. Chapter 2

Red hair, purple eyes . . . Narumi blinked slowly, clearing the sleep from his eyes, and reached out with one hand. “Mom?” 

_Smack._

Naruto yelped and shot up in bed, rubbing his cheek. “Ow! That hurt, ya know!” 

Tsubame’s smile was sweet and very, very sharp. “Do I look like your mother, Namikaze?” 

“It's dark!” he protested. “And you do have kind of girly hair.” Not that it didn’t look nice, he noted privately. Normally Tsubame kept his hair up in a bun, away from his face, but tonight he only had it up in a ponytail, free to fall down his back. He’d only seen it like this once, on the night of the battle in Uzushio. 

“Get dressed. We’re going out,” he said. “The others are meeting us downstairs. Be ready in sixty seconds or I’ll leave you to find the way yourself.” 

Narumi scrambled for his clothes, yanking on the first fresh pair out of his bag and yanking it on as he tumbled towards the front door. “Hey, don’t be mean! I didn’t mean it. Your hair’s, uh, cool.” 

“Shut up about my hair!” Tsubame snapped. Narumi stared after him as the other man started down the stairs. If he didn’t know better, he would’ve said that Tsubame’s face was rather . . . red. 

“Namikaze!” Tsubame barked. “Are you coming, or not?” 

Narumi jerked back to awareness and sprinted down the stairs. “I’m coming, I’m coming. Where are we going, anyways?” 

“To meet with the others,” Tsubame said, as Narumi burst out into the open street. Narumi whirled around to face him, only to find that Tsubame was already walking down the street. Tsubame was wearing a pair of fancy sandals, rather than the more practical pair favored by most shinobi, but even then he moved surprisingly quickly in them, especially considering that he was also wearing a hakama rather than the standard shinobi pants. 

The apartment was fairly close to the center of town, so they reached the main street in short order. Tsubame, Narumi realized after a moment, was moving towards their destination with pinpoint accuracy, not even looking around them to see if the people they were meeting were around. “Tsubame,” he realized, “you’re a sensor, aren’t you?” 

Tsubame glanced back at him, surprised. “You figured it out quickly. Yes, I am.” 

“What are you sensing? Can you sense, like, individuals or something? Does everyone have a special chakra signature?” 

He shook his head. “No, I'm not that skilled of a sensor. I can tell roughly how many people are around me, and I can distinguish between certain special types of chakra. Some Uzumaki have distinctive chakra—you do, for instance. But with the people we’re meeting, all I really have to do is head for the largest group of chakra signatures around.” 

“Who are we meeting, anyways?” Narumi asked. 

“You’ll see in a minute—there, they’re waiting for us,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi followed Tsubame’s gaze towards a bar on the corner of the street. He noticed Jiraiya’s unmistakable hair first, and then recognized Tsunade and . . . Orochimaru. He very nearly grabbed a kunai, but stopped himself at the last minute. At this point in time. Orochimaru hadn’t done much of anything. He was, what, twenty, twenty-one? Hell, the three of them weren’t even known as the Sannin yet. 

He looked, then, at the fourth member of the group. Where the other three were intimately familiar to him, even as young and happy as they were, this other man was a complete unknown, even though he looked to be the same age as them. His hair, however, was grey and spiky, and he stood with a casual nonchalance that struck him as familiar, somehow. 

“Ah, Tsubame-chan!” Jiraiya cheered. “Here we are, together at last. We’ve missed you on the battlefield.” 

“Stop calling me that,” Tsubame muttered as they approached, easily dodging Jiraiya’s one-armed hug. “And you know I’ve been needed in Uzushio.” 

That sobered the other four up quickly. “How are things there?” the grey-haired man asked. 

“Coming along,” Tsubame said. “We lost good people, but the majority have managed to pull through. I’ve been pulling overtime at the hospital, though.” 

Tsunade grimaced. “Tell me about it. Medics are in such high demand that I feel like I’ve seen more missions than these three combined.” 

“I hear it’s thanks to your friend here,” Orochimaru said, peering at Narumi in clear interest. “We haven’t been introduced.” 

“Of course,” Tsubame said. “Namikaze, this is Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Tsunade Senju, and Sakumo Hatake. This is Narumi Namikaze.” 

Hatake—that was why he was so familiar. This was Kakashi’s dad, Narumi realized, looking into the man’s face. He did look familiar, now that Narumi really was close enough to really see him, although Kakashi looked . . . lazier. 

“That was good work you did there,” Sakumo said, shaking his hand. 

Narumi rubbed the back of his head. “Anyone would’ve done it.” 

“Anyone who could summon a full army of shadow clones,” Orochimaru said, still staring at Narumi with that sharp, unblinking gaze. “Tell me, did you modify the jutsu? Have them stored in seals? Or do you just have that much chakra.” 

“Huh, I never thought of doing that,” Narumi said. “Uh, no, I just have a lot of chakra.” 

“There’s an understatement if I ever heard one,” Jiraiya laughed, slapping Narumi on the back so hard he nearly stumbled. “I hear we have you do thank for saving Tsubame-chan, here.” 

“Stop calling me that,” Tsubame muttered. Jiraiya made an odd, pained noise, and turned stark white. Naruto took one look at Tsubame’s icy expression and decided he was better off not asking. 

Orochimaru sighed loudly. “Pity. I was hoping it would be something interesting, but you appear to be yet another brutish lout. No doubt you and Jiraiya will get along famously. Tsubame, come. I had something I wanted to consult you on in regards to seals.” 

Orochimaru’s mention of seals made him shiver, but luckily, no one seemed to notice. “Hey, hang on! I thought we agreed I got to pick his brain first? We had a bet, bastard!” Jiraiya yelled. 

Orochimaru sniffed indignantly. “You took too long to ask him. Idiot.” 

While the two of them bickered, Tsunade slipped her arm through Tsubame’s and led him inside. “Namikaze, come on. Those idiots will be there all day,” she called over her shoulder. “Now tell me what you’ve been up to before those two start picking your brain.” 

“Oh, like you don’t want to pick my brain too,” Tsubame said. 

“Yes, but unlike them, I have the sense to wait until we’re working. It’s my night off! I’ve forgotten what my apartment looks like, I’ve spent so much time at the hospital.” She sank into a booth, pulling Tsubame down beside her and gesturing for Narumi to sit across from them. Sakumo, who had followed them in, sat beside him. “You, what’s your story?” 

Narumi blinked and pointed at himself. “Me?” 

“Yeah, you. You see any other mysterious shinobi here? We’re all curious. I’m just cutting to the chase for all our sakes so we don’t have to put up with the idiots trying to act like spies,” Tsunade said as she flagged down a passing waitress. “Sake, all around. Keep it coming!” 

“You’ll regret that in the morning,” Sakumo chuckled, even as he accepted a glass of sake. 

Tsunade shrugged. “I don’t have a shift, and Dan said he’d make breakfast. The way I see it, I’m better off than the rest of you. Kaede’s still in the field, isn’t she?” Sakumo nodded his agreement. “And those two are still bachelors, and these two are just going to be stuck with each other’s suffering! Oh, I’m going to enjoy everyone begging me for hangover remedies!” she cackled. 

Narumi couldn’t help but grin; it seemed Tsunade hadn’t changed all that much, at least. 

A crash resounded through the room, bringing all the ninja to their feet and their hands to their weapons as a white blur shot through the room, crashed into the opposite wall, and dropped to the ground. 

JIraiya, groaning, flopped onto his back and rubbed his head. Orochimaru, on the other side of the new, Jiraiya-shaped window, dusted off his hands and clothes, stepped neatly through the door, and took a seat beside Tsunade.

“So,” he said, casually sipping from his sake cup. “Where were we?” 

“Asking this guy his story,” Tsunade said, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Even the other shinobi in the bar had already returned to their drinks and conversations, paying no attention to the body on the floor. 

“Ah, the _boring_ method,” Orochimaru sighed. “Very well, carry on. I must admit to being curious.” 

Jiraiya finally roused himself, still rubbing his head, and sank into the remaining seat next to Sakumo. “That’s no fun,” he grumbled, apparently having overheard their conversation. “But fine, fine.” 

“Oh, like you don’t know more than us, anyways,” Tsunade said, rolling her eyes. “Come on, Namikaze, spill the beans!” 

“Um.” Narumi rubbed the back of his head. “What did you want to know exactly?” 

“How did you learn the Kage Bunshin? That’s a Konoha secret technique,” Orochimaru said. “And seeing as I don’t recall someone stealing any village secrets recently . . .” 

“Oh. I learned from my teacher,” Narumi said, which . . . okay, was a complete lie, but he couldn’t exactly tell them that he _had_ stolen village secrets, even if he’d been twelve and (in retrospect) kind of stupid.

Jiraiya leaned back and peered into his sake cup as if examining it for secrets. “Ah, yes, the mysterious teacher. Let me take a guess: a Konoha missing-nin.” 

“He might’ve been. He didn’t wear a village headband,” Narumi said. 

“What was his name?” Jiraiya asked. 

Narumi shrugged. “I just called him old man. Or pervert.” 

Sakumo snorted sake out his nose. The rest of them kindly ignored him as he hacked and coughed. Jiraiya held his sake cup up, squinted at it, shrugged, and gulped it down. Orochimaru’s smirk turned a little more evil. 

“Anyways, he . . . passed away years ago,” Narumi said. “I doubt it’s relevant.” 

Jiraiya shrugged. “You never know what could be useful. Still, seeing as he knew Konoha techniques, I’m betting he was a Konoha shinobi. Maybe from sensei’s time? No, maybe earlier. Records from that time are sketchy, but I could take a look.” He stroked his chin. “Orochimaru, what do you think?” 

Orochimaru hummed thoughtfully. “If he was from sensei’s generation, you’re more likely to find information. But if he was from earlier, you’re unlikely to find any descriptions detailed enough to give you a lead. Not to mention that his appearance would have changed over the years, so any descriptions you did find would likely not match up with Narumi’s knowledge. All in all, I would say finding any concrete information would be quite unlikely.” 

“How close were you to this guy?” Jiraiya asked.

“He was sort of like a godfather to me,” Narumi said. “I never knew my parents, so my teacher was all I had.” 

Tsunade grimaced. “Cheerful,” she said, and knocked back her sake. “Come on, everybody, another round! We’re celebrating tonight.” 

“And what, exactly, are we celebrating?” Tsubame asked, even as he accepted and knocked back the next two cups of sake Tsunade pressed on him. 

“Uzushio’s survival, and ours,” Tsunade said grimly. “Come on, you all, bottoms up.” 

They all dutifully chugged their glasses, and no one protested when Tsunade topped them all up again, although Tsubame’s cheeks were starting to look suspiciously pink and Orochimaru’s eyes had taken on a glassy sheen. Sakumo seemed normal enough, until he hiccuped. 

“That’s enough for Tsubame-chan, I think,” Jiraiya chuckled, pulling his sake away from him. “Still as much of a lightweight as always, huh?” 

“I have seals to deal with hangovers and I’m not giving you any,” Tsubame said, and grabbed the glass back. 

“Suit yourself,” Jiraiya said, and slung an arm around Sakumo’s shoulder. “So, Sakumo, how go things with your lady-love?” 

“You and Tsunade, both so domestic. It’s sickening,” Orochimaru said. 

Sakumo elbowed Jiraiya sharply, forcing him to let go before he spilled his sake over the both of them. “I’m sure you’d like to know!” he laughed. 

“Which one did you decide on?” Tsubame asked, abruptly. 

Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru all turned as one to stare at Tsubame, and then, still moving as one, turned eerie grins at Sakumo. 

“Oho!” Jiraiya laughed, ruffling Sakumo’s already messy hair. “So that’s how it is, huh? Doing these sorts of things without telling your best friends. You punk!” 

“You’ve been holding out on us,” Tsunade said, cracking her knuckles threateningly. 

“And yet you asked Tsubame for advice? Tut, tut, Sakumo,” Orochimaru said, shaking his head back and forth. “Resorting to asking someone six years your junior for help.” 

“It’s because you guys have bad taste,” Sakumo said drily. 

“Bad taste!” Tsunade yelled, slamming her hands down on the table hard enough that the sake bottles all rattled and would have tipped over if Narumi hadn’t hastily steadied them. “You bastard, I’ll show you bad taste!” 

The appearance of a small, square box shut them all up. They stared down at it intently, and gasped when Sakumo opened it with a flick of his finger. 

A small, golden band with a white jewel set into it sat nestled in the box, twinkling in the light. 

Tsunade sat back and huffed. “Boring.” 

“It’s kind of plain, isn’t it?” Jiraiya noted. Orochimaru nodded in agreement. “Jeez, Sakumo, you’re giving her this?” 

“It’s a diamond!” Sakumo complained. “You know how hard it is to find these things since the war? This thing is worth twenty S rank missions!” 

“Doesn’t look like it,” Jiraiya complained, although Orochimaru looked rather more impressed. 

“Well, I’m not giving it to you,” Sakumo said, snapping the box shut and putting it back in his pocket. “I’m proposing once she gets back.” 

“Sakumo, you dog!” JIraiya cackled, already recovered from his disdain of the ring. 

“Wolf, actually,” Sakumo corrected. 

“Personally, I liked the one with the blue stones,” Tsubame said. “But this one is nice too.” 

Narumi looked around at them. “Uh, congratulations?” he guessed. 

“Yeah, congratulations!” Tsunade cheered, pouring another glass of sake for all of them. “Cheers, to Sakumo’s marriage!” 

“Cheers!” they all chorused, clinking their glasses together. 

“Sakumo’s getting married?” another group of ninja called from across the room. “Hey, guys, Sakumo’s getting married!” 

Before long, the whole bar was cheering and offering congratulations, and even some shinobi walking by or eating in restaurants across the street had come to see what the fuss was about. Amidst the chaos, Sakumo groaned and sank his head onto the table. “She hasn’t even said yes yet,” he groaned. “And now she never will!” 

“Oh, don’t be dramatic, you big baby,” Tsunade snorted. “Drink some more!” 

Sakumo dutifully accepted the two glasses of sake she pressed onto him. This seemed to be the cue for the rest of the bar to start buying them drinks to celebrate, and before long their table was filled with a variety of sake bottles and shots. Jiraiya and Tsunade, and even Orochimaru, in his own creepily quiet way, accepted this turn of events with wild abandon, tossing back drinks one after another, even as their cheeks turned red and their words slurred together. Sakumo joined in after a moment of sulking, although Narumi got the sense that this was more to drown his misery and get so drunk that he wouldn’t remember any of it in the morning. Even Tsubame made a valiant attempt, although he slumped against the wall, fast asleep, even before they were halfway through with all the drinks they had been purchased. 

Narumi joined in with them happily. He might not have been a jinchuuriki anymore, but some of the effects had lingered, such as his massive chakra pool and his incredible metabolism. He was pretty sure that by the time they polished off the alcohol, he’d had more than anyone else at the table, and was half as drunk as them. 

“Saaakumo,” Jiraiya slurred as they stumbled from the table. “Mah friend . . . we gotta . . . enjoy our youth while you’re still free.” 

Sakumo shook himself free from Jiraiya’s grip, and somehow managed to make his way to the door. “Nah, I gotta, gotta write a letter. Gotta write to Kaede.” He practically fell through the door, but somehow managed to stay upright as he wobbled down the street, mumbling to himself. 

Jiraiya shrugged and staggered off towards the red light district. 

“Have fun!” Orochimaru called, and giggled. 

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at him. “What’d’ja do?” 

“Hmm, nothing much. He’ll be fine other than performance issues,” Orochimaru said, still snickering. He swayed on his feet, steadied himself on the wall, and turned rather green. He vanished without another word. Tsunade, shaking her head woozily, followed him. 

Narumi tapped Tsubame’s shoulder, and then, when that failed, shook him. Neither action accomplished anything beyond making Tsubame curl up into a ball. Narumi rolled his eyes, but let him sleep, instead enlisting the help of a couple drunk jounin to get Tsubame on his back, with his arms slung over Narumi’s shoulders and Narumi’s arms tucked under Tsubame’s legs. Tsubame fell back asleep in seconds, and remained that way even when Narumi hauled him up the stairs and dumped him into bed. 

***

Naruto woke to an apartment that was empty but for a bowl of rice, pickles, miso soup, and a letter stating that Tsubame was in negotiations with the Hokage, would likely be stuck in negotiations for the next few days, and that he should seek out one of the four he’d met the previous night if he remembered them and if he wanted to risk the hangover. Alternatively, the paper suggested several good restaurants in the area, several good training grounds, and advised asking civilians if he wanted anything more touristy. 

Narumi took one look at the breakfast and went straight back to bed to sleep off his hangover, and awoke much later to a white mask looming over him. 

He shrieked and shot up in bed, smacking his face against the mask. The ANBU reared back, and Narumi rolled to the ground, clutching his head and cursing up a storm.

The door opened. “Oh,” said Tsubame, sounding distinctly unimpressed. “So you are alive.” 

“Sage’s balls, you didn’t have to startle me like that,” Narumi groaned. “Oh, that did not do anything for my hangover.” 

“Just as pathetic as the rest of them,” Tsubame sighed. He knelt down beside Narumi and pressed a seal to his head. Narumi groaned in relief as his headache and lingering nausea vanished. 

“Tsubame, you’re a god,” he sighed. “Is that breakfast still there?” 

“Unfortunately, no, but there is dinner,” Tsubame said. “You’ve been asleep for hours.” 

“I’m never drinking again,” Narumi sighed as he got to his feet. The ANBU had vanished, leaving them alone. 

“Thankfully, the others seem to agree with you,” Tsubame said, as he took a seat at the kitchen table, where someone had laid out plates of rice, fish, vegetables, and pickles. Tsubame, it seemed, had fairly simple tastes. 

“How are negotiations? What are you negotiating for, anyways?” he asked. 

“Reparations,” Tsubame said, once he’d swallowed. “Konoha is bound by our treaty to defend us in the case of attack, just as we are bound to defend Konoha. They failed to uphold their end of the treaty, even though we have upheld ours, which is a very serious slight to their honor. It doesn’t look good, so they want to give us reparations both to uphold their honor, and because giving another village reparations makes them look better, since it means they can easily afford to give away these things. Basically, if they give us supplies and food, it means they can easily spare these things, which makes them seem stronger. At the same time, we don’t want the amount of supplies we’re given in the reparations to be obvious, because it makes us seem weaker. Although we really do need them,” he grumbled. 

“Huh. Do you do these kinds of things a lot?” he asked. 

“Diplomacy missions? Not that often. We don’t have them very often, to be fair, and when we do I usually get sent on them,” he said. “Medics are in high demand, though, so more often I’m in the hospital or on the front lines.” 

Both of them fell quiet at the mention of the war. Narumi had to admit he didn’t remember much about the Second Shinobi War, other than that Nagato said that Konoha had started the war, the Sannin had made their reputation during the war, and that it had left small countries such as Ame devastated. 

Times like these he wished he’d paid more attention in school. He’d spent days cramming details on important missions and events into his brain, but he was lacking a lot of the bigger picture. 

“We’ll probably have another mission pretty soon. We’re working out a joint mission deal with Konoha, as part of the reparations,” he said. “With Tsunade’s team, probably, and maybe Sakumo, Dan, or Kaede.” 

“Already? What kind of mission?” he asked, desperately hunting through his mental files for any idea of what they could be sent to do. 

Tsubame smiled grimly. “We’re at war, Namikaze. What kinds of missions do you think they give their heavy hitters?”


	3. Chapter 3

Heavy hitters, as it turned out, got the kind of missions that involved camping out in trenches on the Suna-Konoha border, covered in mud and leaves and praying the seals protecting them from earth jutsu held so they didn’t get crushed in their sleep. Narumi had been placed on a joint Konoha and Uzushio squad with Dan, Sakumo, Tsubame, and whatever Uchiha or Hyuuga got stuck with them. For the moment, they had a ten-year-old Uchiha named Isuzu, fresh from the Academy. Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru had been shipped off to Ame, so it was just the five of them and the other squads stationed with them.

Tsubame appeared beside him with a splash of water. “How are the seals, Namikaze?” 

Narumi sat back on his heels. “They seem good. They match up with what you showed me, at least.” 

Tsubame made a pleased noise. “We’ll make an Uzumaki seal master of you yet.” 

“That’s why Uzushio was targeted, yeah?” Naruto asked. 

Tsubame nodded. “Most likely. Our primary responsibilities are shielding our allies and capturing or stopping enemies, especially large groups of enemies. A seal array in the right place at the right time can capture or kill a whole squad, and the reason why we’re able to stay in these trenches is because these arrays prevent earth jutsu from being used here.” 

“And you have medical seals,” he said. 

“And that,” Tsubame agreed. “Preferably we’d also have a medic on hand, but medics are in short supply. I don’t have the chakra control for it, unfortunately.” 

Narumi laughed. “Yeah, my chakra control was always shit. It took me ages to get tree-walking down.” 

“I’ve been walking on water since before I could remember, so mine has always been passable. Still nowhere near the level required to be a medic, however,” Tsubame said. 

A bird call pierced the air, and Tsubame frowned. 

“Enemies?” Narumi guessed. 

Tsubame nodded. “The Uchiha must have seen something. Come, we should return.” 

They used shunshin to return to the rest of the squad, splattering their companions with water and leaves. “Ugh,” Sakumo grimaced. “Why can’t you do a normal shunshin instead of splashing all of us, Tsubame?” 

“What did you see?” Tsubame asked. 

Dan nodded at Isuzu. “Tell them, Isuzu.” 

Isuzu’s sharingan whirled as he looked over the edge of the trench. “Suna shinobi, heading this way. A whole bunch of them. At least fifty, maybe more. It’s hard to tell with so many.” 

“Good. Turn that off before you exhaust yourself,” Tsubame ordered. Isuzu sighed in relief as his eyes returned to their natural black. “Go down the line and pass the word along.” 

Isuzu nodded and dashed off, keeping low to the ground so as not to be seen as he left their trench. “Our seals are in good order,” Tsubame said. “Sakumo, can your wolves track them?” 

Sakumo bit his thumb and slammed his hand on the ground, and three wolves appeared in a small puff of smoke. “Gin, Jun, Ran, enemy combatants headed our way. Track them and report back.” 

The wolves slipped away and disappeared into the forest like ghosts. By the time Isuzu returned, there was no sign they had ever been there. 

“Everyone is ready,” he said. 

“Good,” Tsubame said. “Now we wait.” 

“You got goggles, kid?” Sakumo asked Isuzu, who hesitated a moment before shaking his head. Sakumo tossed him a scroll. “You’ll need them. These guys love going for the eyes, especially if you’re an Uchiha.” 

Isuzu gulped and pulled on the goggles as the rest of them settled in, ready to move at a moment’s notice. “They’re splitting up,” Isuzu murmured after a moment. “Pincer attack? There’s a wolf coming this way.” 

Sakumo sniffed the air. “Ran,” he said. “Hm. Puppet corps?” 

“I can’t tell,” Isuzu confessed. 

Ran slipped back into their trench. “Puppet corps,” she said. “A full troop of them headed this way.” 

Narumi jerked as he heard a shout from somewhere in the distance. “They’re here,” Tsubame said grimly, and then the world exploded in light and color. 

Narumi leaped from the trench, summoning his shadow clones into existence with barely a second thought. The seal arrays had triggered, he realized moments later, trapping a few squads of shinobi and taking them out of the equation but leaving many more free. “Isuzu, fire!” he called, leaping out of the way of a Great Fireball just in time. The puppet user swore and tried to recall his puppet before it burned to a crisp, but a wolf leapt on him and tore out his throat. 

Narumi glanced over at the kid and swore as he saw him frozen, staring at the wolf in horror. He ducked under the sweep of a poisoned blade, allowing one of his clones to take care of his attacker, and dashed toward Isuzu. He snatched him out of the way of a spray of senbon and held him close as they rolled along the ground. “Hold on tight,” he ordered, shifting Isuzu to his back and summoning two more clones. “You two, watch my back. Isuzu, what do you see?” 

“On your six, there’s a squad of puppet users rallying,” Isuzu called. 

“Fire on my mark,” Narumi ordered, and leapt back into the fray, dodging stray jutsu and weapons. Flashes of memories returned to him as his clones were dispersed, but he dismissed them and summoned more clones. He threw a spray of kunai into the back of a puppet user, who staggered and fell, revealing a group of puppet users that were gathering not far from him. 

“Fire when in range,” Narumi ordered. 

Hot fire bloomed over his head. A few of the puppet users managed to leap out of the way, but the rest screamed as the fire devoured their puppets and then reached for them. A wind jutsu took care of the rest of them, scattering them and throwing them into trees. He caught sight of a glimpse of Sakumo, his white blade shining bright, and then of a Suna jounin turning on his squad, a mark of Dan’s technique at work. 

Tsubame appeared beside him in a flash. “Narumi, array eight!” he barked. 

“The what?” Narumi asked as he thrust his kunai into an enemy’s eye, and Isuzu spat fire at a puppet getting ready to spray senbon at them. 

Tsubame groaned. “You’re going through the Uzumaki standard seal patterns as soon as we get some down time. Just watch my back.” 

While Tsubame drew on the ground, Narumi and Isuzu maintained the perimeter, Isuzu tossing fire at puppets and people alike, and Narumi using wind to push back projectile weapons or poison smoke. His clones raced through the battlefield, screaming war cries at the tops of their lungs. A few of them came to join him, protecting both Tsubame and the seal, until Ran howled and Tsubame screamed, “Narumi, trees!” 

Narumi leapt for the trees as a wave of water crashed through the battlefield. The Uzushio shinobi seemed to know what to do, as the moment the seal activated they were up in the trees, with their Konoha counterparts not far behind. The Suna shinobi, however, were inexperienced both in fighting Uzushio shinobi and in dealing with large quantities of rushing water. The few Konoha and Uzushio shinobi who had been caught up in the technique soon climbed out of it using water walking, but the Suna shinobi were either killed while still finding their feet, or sucked down into the whirlpool at the center of the seal before they had a chance. 

Then, all at once, the water receded as if it had never been there, leaving dozens of shinobi scattered about the field, groaning. 

Tsubame forced a stack of seals into Narumi’s hands. “Put these on the chests of any drowning victims on our side, or any highly ranked or important people on their side, and activate them.” 

Narumi lowered Isuzu to the ground. “Come on,” he said. “I could use a hand.” 

Isuzu nodded slowly and trailed after him as he headed across the battlefield, to the closest green and blue jounin vests he could see. Some were already dead, killed before Tsubame had even activated his technique. Only a few had actually fallen prey to the technique, and they were quickly revived with the seals Tsubame had given him. 

They spluttered back to consciousness, hacking and coughing up water. “Ugh! Fucking Uzushio bastard!” they called to where Tsubame was picking his way through a group of bodies. “Some warning, next time?” 

“I believe someone needs to brush up on their battle signals. A wolf’s howl was the signal mentioned in the mission report,” Tsubame said. 

“Eh? There was a mission report?” Narumi said. 

Tsubame sighed. “Hopeless as ever. I can’t believe you’re an Uzumaki.” 

“I thought you’d do it before you activated it, not right as you did,” the Konoha shinobi grumbled, even as he swiped a stack of the seals from Narumi. 

“Even if you hadn’t heard it, your water-walking should have been more than good enough to see you through,” Tsubame said. 

The shinobi threw his arms up and wandered off, muttering about Uzushio shinobi all the while. The Uzushio shinobi, none of whom had fallen prey to the technique, just snickered. 

Narumi handed half of his papers to Isuzu. “You see how to use them? Go ahead and check on the Konoha and Uzushio shinobi. Once you finish, stick by someone in the squad.” 

Isuzu nodded and ran off, and Narumi began the slow work of picking through the enemy shinobi. Some were dead, some had drowned too quickly for him to save, and some were genin or chuunin that he couldn’t justify using the supply of seals on. He slapped them on a few important-looking jounin and some shinobi he recognized from the bingo book he’d been given. He rolled over a red-haired man in a tan jounin vest, looking for some distinctive marks, and froze at a familiar face. 

He thought, for a moment, that he was looking at Sasori, before he remembered that Sasori was probably a baby. Sasori’s father then, he assumed. He thought he remembered that Chiyo lady going on about someone killing Sasori’s parents during the war. 

He scrambled through the man’s pockets for his identification, and got his confirmation. This man was either Sasori’s father, or a very close relative. Narumi slapped a seal on his chest and tied him up as he coughed up water, and then quickly checked the identification of the women closest to him to see if he could find the man’s wife. He found her not far away, and quickly slapped a seal on her before tying her up as well. Narumi left them there once he was certain they weren’t going anywhere, and continued on his way. 

He’d just about finished tying up the last jounin he thought he recognized as someone important when Tsubame appeared next to him. “What’s with those two random shinobi you got?” he said. 

“Eh? You mean they aren’t important? I thought I’d seen them in the bingo book or something,” he said. 

Tsubame sighed. “The woman isn’t even a jounin. I suppose it doesn’t matter. Chiyo escaped with half the puppet corps, so that’s down the drain. We’ll transport all of them to Konoha and see if they know something.” 

Narumi hummed. “They might, if they were here. You never know! I mean, I’m not a jounin, and I know a lot of stuff.” 

“Well, you’re an anomaly,” Tsubame said wryly. 

Narumi winced as the last of his clones dispersed. “Ugh, suicide jutsu,” he said. “Some puppet user decided to go out in style.” 

Dan and Sakumo appeared in a flash of leaves. Isuzu, Narumi realized after a moment, was perched on Dan’s shoulders. “There’s a clean-up squad and a couple capture squads headed our way,” Sakumo said. “We’re to hold the position and help them with the prisoners if need be.” 

Narumi felt a pulse of chakra from Tsubame, who pulled out a scroll and opened it. “No, we aren’t,” he said grimly. “Uzukage-sama is calling our team to the Kiri front. They’ve got some trouble over there. We’re leaving Konoha Team Three in command here.” 

“Ugh, not those assholes,” Sakumo groaned. “Dan, you deal with them. You’re the only one of us with real social skills.” 

Dan laughed in amusement, but obligingly hurried off, calling out to a particularly grumpy Hyuuga and exchanging a few quick words. “We’ll hit up a supply drop on the way,” Sakumo said. “There’s one along the way, if I’m not wrong.” 

“I know the one,” Dan agreed. “The one at the watch post?” 

“That’s the one. If we make good time, we might be able to beg a bed from the folks out there,” Sakumo said. 

***

They did not, in fact, manage to bag a bed from the sleep-deprived, jumpy shinobi at the guard post, nor did they manage to for the remainder of their trip. They slept in trees or on the floor of whatever guard post they managed to reach the entire way to the coast. By the time they reached Uzushio, beds felt like a distant dream. At that point, Narumi would have killed for even a hammock. 

He flopped down on the sand with a sigh and unzipped his flak jacket to tug irritably at his sweat-soaked shirt. “Just dump me in the ocean,” he groaned. “I’ll survive.” 

Tsubame frowned down at him. His red hair was up in a bun again, both to keep it out of the way and to keep it from being soaked with sweat and sticking to his neck. “Get up, Namikaze. We don’t have time to waste.” 

Narumi reluctantly hauled himself to his feet as Tsubame took off over the waves, barely giving his feet time to touch the water before he was off again. Narumi took off after him, the other three hot on his heels, with Dan looking after Isuzu. 

Tsubame reached into his bag and pulled out a scroll, reading as he skipped over the swirling water beneath them. “Kiri’s getting rowdy. We should be just in time to meet our people before they head out. We’re hitting them before they can hit us. With the seal arrays in the state they are, they’d smash through our defenses with no problem.”

“How on earth do you do that?” Narumi asked. “Some kind of seal thing?” 

Tsubame glanced back at him in surprise. “What, the message transfer? Uzukage-sama and I have linked seals. If one of us seals something in, the other can take it out.” 

“Handy.” 

Isuzu dashed ahead, laughing as the waves sprayed him with salty water. “Don’t fall in!” Dan called after him as he fell into step beside Narumi. “Tsubame, what’s the news?” 

“Looking for news about Tsunade?” Tsubame asked wryly. “She’s still in Ame with the other two, last I heard. Hanzo the Salamander is making some noise, I think, but nothing’s come of it. No news of Chiyo, either.”

Sakumo groaned. “They’re going to send me after her, I just know it. I always get the worst jobs. I’ve been stabbed, burned, electrocuted . . .” 

“Poisoned on that one bodyguard mission,” Dan mused. “Left to drown in a well that one time with the hunter-nin . . .” 

“Tied up to a tree completely naked,” Tsubame offered. “Oh, no, wait, tied up to Kaminari no Kuni’s daimyo’s wife’s bed while all her maids laughed at you. That was funny.” 

“The time when he was tied up to the Kazekage’s bed was funnier,” Dan said. 

“You never told me about that one,” Tsubame said. “You’ll have to fill me in over drinks.” 

Sakumo groaned. “Dan, we had a deal.” 

“Sorry. All’s fair in love and war,” Dan said, completely unrepentant. “You can cry about your woes to Kaede, I’m sure she’ll be sympathetic.” 

“You kidding? She’ll laugh herself sick. I thought she was going to die when I told her about the crime lord incident.” 

Sand crunched beneath their feet as they left the ocean for the shores of the island. Tsubame led the way through the twisting canal to the Uzukage’s office. Tsubasa was waiting for them, along with a full squad of ANBU. “There you are,” she said grimly. “You’re moving out. Eel will fill you in on the situation while you’re on the move.” 

A masked ANBU nodded at them politely, and Tsubame returned the gesture. “We’ve just returned from the Suna front. They’ve retreated for the moment, though I have no doubt they’ll return. Tsunade’s antidotes are holding us in good stead even in her absence.” 

Tsubasa laughed. “I bet that old bat’s taking it real well, huh?” 

“Let’s just be glad the Kazekage hasn’t gotten involved,” Tsubame said. 

“Don’t worry so much. I have people working on it,” she said, waving her hand. “Now go.” 

Tsubame glanced around the room. Other than their squad, there was a squad containing orange-haired Uzumaki woman, a pair of blue-haired twins, and three Konoha shinobi, as well as the eight masked ANBU. “This is everyone?” 

“You’ll make it work,” she said. A bird alighted on the window, and she sighed as she retrieved the scroll. Tsubame nodded towards the door, and they left with only a few missteps. 

Narumi wasn’t going to forget an ANBU, elite ninja, pride of Uzushio, getting accidentally tripped by a little kid anytime soon. Judging by the snort that had managed to escape Sakumo, neither was he. Tsubame, clearly the most mature out of all of them, just sighed and led the way down to the shore. Once there, the other squad peeled off from them along with four of the ANBU, probably heading for a different part of Kiri. 

“Our job is to cause trouble wherever we think it’ll hit Kiri hardest. Supply lines, mines, fields, guard posts, you name it. Whatever we have to do to make an opening for them to do what they need to do. And before you ask, no, I don’t know what their mission is, and no, you aren’t allowed to pester them. Unlike your Konoha ANBU, Uzushio ANBU  _ bite _ .” 

“Sakumo would know,” Dan said. 

A scroll flew threw the air and smacked Narumi in the head, followed by a call of “Catch!” 

“Some warning?” he yelled back as he scrambled to grab the scroll before it was lost to the whirlpools under their feet. 

“Those are standard seal arrays. Study them,” Tsubame ordered. 

Narumi summoned a couple clones and set them to studying it. “Where are we headed first?” 

“Kiri’s docks,” Tsubame yelled. 

“I’m thinking fire,” Sakumo mused. “Lots of fire.” 

“The wood’s wet, you’ll just make smoke,” Tsubame said. “Think before you speak next time.” 

Sakumo sighed. “Fine, fine. We’re going for big and flashy, right? Let’s get some big, fiery explosions for the boats. I’ve got a nice lightning dragon that’ll look badass coming through the smoke.” 

“Sakumo, we’re near water,” Tsubame replied. 

“So? You have seals for that, don’t you? Come on, it’ll scare them shitless,” Sakumo said with a wolfish grin. 

Tsubame sighed and tucked a strand of hair behind his ear. “You can’t always rely on me to keep your bizarre plans from getting out of hand,” he complained, even as he produced a seal. “This should protect you in case the lightning gets a bit out of hand. It does have a limit, so try not to go swimming. Keep away from the water as much as possible.” 

Narumi examined the seal. “What does it do? I’m getting something about repelling the lightning?” 

“Essentially,” Tsubame said. “It should protect your person and the area immediately around you. Regardless, you should stay back while Sakumo and I go ahead. Water dragon, then lightning dragon.” 

“Then clones,” Sakumo said. “To finish off the ones still standing. Make them look like a bunch of different people, if possible. We want to make them think an army’s headed their way. Dan, Isuzu, you move in with the clones. Isuzu, keep an eye out for anyone who looks important, or anyone who looks like they’re pulling any big stunts.” 

Isuzu nodded. “And the rest,” Sakumo finished, “we’ll figure out as we go along. Alright, let’s do this!” 

Sakumo and Tsubame dashed ahead, leaving only the violently churning water in their wake. The ANBU had vanished already to do whatever it was they had been sent to do. 

Narumi ran, and watched as in the distance a watery dragon reared its head and lightning crackled through the sky. “Sakumo must have very good control to keep it from getting out of hand,” he mused. 

Dan nodded. “Even with the seals, Tsubame wouldn’t trust anyone else with lightning around water. Sakumo is a master of the element.” He smiled grimly. “There probably won’t be much left for you to clean up.” 

“Even so,” Narumi said, and summoned a horde of clones. They all transformed, either into people he had made up or into villagers and shinobi he had known over the course of his life, and ran forwards. He allowed himself to be swept up with them, and spotted Dan and Isuzu doing the same. 

They arrived to docks and boats piled high with corpses. Further back on the shore, Tsubame and Sakumo were fighting several ninja who must have come as backup. With a mighty cry, the clones swept forward, taking the ninja off-guard by their sheer numbers alone. 

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, everything was still. Narumi wandered through the crowd of clones, and eventually came upon Tsubame, who was applying seals to a wound on his leg. As Narumi watched, he activated the seal, and the wound began to heal until it was nothing more than a pink, shiny scar. 

“Impressive,” he said. 

“For simple wounds, at least,” Tsubame said. “A wounded leg is easier to heal than a stab to the stomach or other organs. You need the more delicate touch of a medic for that.” 

“Seals can’t do it?” Narumi mused, tracing the smooth, curving lines of one of the seals. “I dunno, I think they’re pretty delicate.” 

“Not now, at least,” Tsubame hummed thoughtfully. “I’ve been researching it.” 

He stood and wandered over to a body, which had been slashed open from groin to mid-chest. “Sakumo is very good for that,” Tsubame said. 

“Huh? Wait, you mean you experiment on these guys?” Narumi said. 

Tsubame looked at him in surprise. “Of course. I certainly wouldn’t do it on live subjects.” 

“That wasn’t really what I meant,” Narumi said. 

Tsubame’s gaze fell on the Kiri shinobi again. “We all have to do things we don’t like for our village,” he said. “We already killed him. I can’t think of anything worse we could do.” 

“I guess,” Narumi said. 

It just seemed weird to him, coming from a time when only creeps like Orochimaru or Danzo experimented on people like that to a time where it was basically acceptable, at least on the battlefield. “Some Uzushio and Konoha ninja donate their bodies to the village, should they die in battle,” Tsubame said. “Some of them will be taken home. Some will rot where they lie. Some will be taken by other villages, and experimented on. It’s not pretty, but that’s how it is right now.” 

He sighed and sat down, tucking his knees up to his chest, and stared at the corpses scattered around them. “I wish it wasn’t that way. We’ll change things.” 

“Yeah,” Narumi agreed, sitting down beside him. “We will.” 

They sat for a moment, in silence, until Sakumo appeared in the distance, picking his way over the corpses. “There you are. How long do those clones of yours stick around?” 

Narumi shrugged. “As long as they want, or until they get forcefully dispelled.” 

“Excellent. That’ll freak them out, for sure. Can you keep making them whenever one gets dispelled in battle?” Sakumo asked.

“If I have a chance, yeah,” Narumi said. “I can make . . . pretty much as many clones as I want. I’m not even tired after making all those.” He might not have the Kyuubi anymore, but he still retained some of the benefits of being a jinchuuriki. 

Sakumo whistled. “That’s pretty incredible, even for an Uzumaki. Anyways, Dan took a look around and he says there’s a couple of guard stations we can hit on the way to a supply route. Isuzu’s with me on fire duty. You’re on clone duty. Tsubame, whatever crazy seal shit you think up. Dan’s doing his spirit release, because it freaks them out like nothing else.” 

“Like you wouldn’t scream like a civilian if your teammate turned around and stabbed you,” Tsubame scoffed. He pulled himself to his feet, brushed himself off, and peered out over the horizon. His red hair gleamed in the setting sun, and Narumi couldn’t help but watch in fascination as the light brought out the golds and oranges hidden in the sea of red. He irritably blew a strand of hair away from his face and turned to look into the distance, where Isuzu was washing his hands in the water while Dan stood nearby. 

“Should we camp?” he murmured, quiet enough that neither of them would overhear. “What do you think, Sakumo?” 

“Me?” Sakumo scratched the back of his head. “Wouldn’t you have more experience with kids than me? Your clan is huge.” 

“Yeah, but if an Uzumaki kid is flagging, they won’t let you forget it. He’s an Uchiha.” Tsubame wrinkled his nose. “They’re so  _ quiet _ .” 

Sakumo sighed. “Can we even afford to camp?” 

Tsubame paused, and then shook his head. “We’ll just have to keep an eye on him. Tell him not to use the Sharingan unless he has to. We’re in the middle of enemy territory, and we have to keep going while our momentum is strong. Namikaze, you have stamina to spare?” Narumi nodded. “Carry him on your back, then.” 

They returned to the other two and informed them of the plan. Isuzu, as they might have predicted, puffed up irritably upon hearing their decision. “I don’t have to ride on your back! I’m not a child, I’m a shinobi of Konoha!” 

“You have to conserve your strength for the Sharingan,” Tsubame said evenly. “Chakra is a resource, and I won’t have you wasting it keeping pace with us when you should be saving it for when we need it. You’ll ride on his back, and that’s an order. Come on, we’re moving out.” 

Isuzu scowled, although the expression didn’t look nearly as fierce on his childish face as he probably wanted it to, and reluctantly clambered onto Narumi’s back. 

They set off without another word, and over the course of the night smashed, stabbed, and burned their way through three guard posts, with the burning and subsequent explosion of a key bridge on the supply route as the grand finale. After surrounding the place with enough seals to ensure no one would want to set within ten feet of it for fear of being reduced to itty, bitty pieces, they retreated for the night and set up camp in a tree, like true Konoha shinobi. 

“These trees aren’t nearly as comfortable as the ones in Konoha,” Sakumo grumbled. “Why couldn’t we just go back to that last guard post again?” 

“If you want to be set upon by Kiri nin in your sleep, be my guest,” Tsubame said. He was perched in a tree of his own, reading through letters by the light of a seal. 

“Anything from Konoha?” Dan asked. 

Tsubame shook his head. “Just requests for updates on our status.” He scribbled down a quick reply and sent the message off again. “Some intel, too. One of the ANBU sent back word of a supply depot not far from here. We’re to hit that in the morning.” 

Sakumo sighed. “I’m so jealous. Those three get to have a show-down with Hanzo the Salamander and we’re stuck in the ass-end of Kiri.” 

“You could always go join them. I’m sure you’d survive somehow. You’re like a cockroach that way,” Tsubame said. 

Sakumo kicked Tsubame’s branch. Tsubame scowled and threw a stick at him. “Children, please,” Dan said calmly. Isuzu, leaning against his side, was fast asleep. 

“So Tsubame has an immature side too, huh? That’s kind of cute,” Narumi couldn’t help but tease, just to see Tsubame’s face turn tomato red. 

As predicted, he flushed and scowled and threw a scroll at Narumi. “Shut up and study your seal arrays.” 

“I’ve already learned so many of them,” he complained. “I’ve had clones studying that other scroll all day.” 

“Keep studying,” Tsubame said. “I won’t have you blowing us all up by messing up such simple seals. The next step is practicing them until you can make them with your eyes closed.” 

“Sir, yes, sir,” Narumi muttered, and settled down to sleep while his clones read over the scroll. Below and around them, his other clones patrolled the perimeter or sat in silence. With that many clones surrounding them, the enemy would be hard pressed to sneak up on them, so he felt comfortable enough to fall into a light doze. 

Narumi woke what seemed like minutes later, when Sakumo fell out of his tree and dispelled one of his clones. Tsubame, startled by the noise, jerked to alertness and probably would have drawn his sword on instinct had he not lost his balance and nearly fallen out of his tree as well. 

“I had a dream,” Sakumo grumbled irritably as he pried sticks and leaves from his person. 

“Don’t tell me.” Tsubame leapt from the tree and landed gracefully, not a hair out of place even after sleeping in a tree all night. Narumi tried to ruffle his hair into something more orderly, and quickly gave it up as a bad job in favor of joining them on the ground for a breakfast of ration bars and water purified by seals. 

“I think you were in it,” Sakumo mused. 

“Now I really don’t want to know,” Tsubame said. 

“I think I was Uzukage,” Sakumo continued. 

Dan and Isuzu joined them on the ground, accepting ration bars from Tsubame. “Is Sakumo talking about his dreams again?” Dan asked. 

“How’d you know?” Sakumo asked. 

“Because as far as I can recall, you haven’t ever been Uzukage,” Dan replied. He made a face at the ration bar, and wolfed it down as quickly as possible. Narumi couldn’t fault him. They tasted like a mix of sugar, cardboard, and rancid meat, and it was impossible to get used to the taste even after weeks of living on them. 

“Fuck you, I’d make a great Uzukage,” Sakumo said. 

“Uzushio would either fall or revolt within a week,” Tsubame said. 

A clone alighted beside them. “Hey, boss, there’s a whole bunch of Kiri shinobi headed this way,” he said. “Should we ambush ‘em?” 

Narumi glanced at the others. “Why not,” Tsubame shrugged. “Just make sure to leave some of them alive to spread the word. Isuzu, stick close to Namikaze.” 

They leapt into their trees, masking their presence with camouflage jutsu and scent-suppressing seals. The Kiri nin traveled along the ground, not as used to perching in trees as their Konoha counterparts. They weren’t, however, totally oblivious, as a few meters before they were within striking range, one of them cried out a warning. 

“Damn, sensors! Dan, go!” Tsubame called. 

Dan’s spirit entered the commander of the troops, who began to strike those around him. Without their leader, the less experienced shinobi began to panic, and were hardly in any state to respond when the other four launched themselves at them. Narumi managed to blast a good chunk of the force into the air with a few wind jutsu, leaving them easy pickings for Isuzu’s fire jutsu. A white wolf leapt over his head and tore out the throat of shinobi in the middle of a technique, and out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of a white tanto crackling with lightning and chakra. Occasionally he jumped over shinobi with seals slapped to their body, or stumbled upon traces of seal arrays. 

The battle was over as quickly as it started, as Narumi slammed a kunai into the back of a woman trying to heal her fallen teammate and looked up to find the rest of the shinobi fleeing into the distance. 

Tsubame peered after them. “Mid-chuunin level,” he estimated. “Not worth chasing.” 

Sakumo turned over one of the fallen corpses. “Got their commanding jounin here, I think,” he called as he rifled through the woman’s pockets. “Orders to scope out situation along the border. Looks like we’ve got their attention. Let’s see. . . Kiri bingo book, I’ll take that if no one else wants it. And . . . aha, ANBU tattoo. Judging by the wounds, I’d say taken off ANBU duty to recover from injuries. They must be feeling the heat if they’re sending out injured shinobi. Scrolls, in code. Tsubame, send these to Uzukage-sama so she can get T&I on them.” 

“Of course. Namikaze, seal array twenty-one,” Tsubame said, tossing yet another scroll to Narumi. “Tag any survivors for ANBU or capture teams. You can draw this one directly on the skin.” 

Narumi went around, drawing out the seal on any living shinobi, while Tsubame did the same. Dan, Sakumo, and Isuzu continued to search the fallen shinobi for anything useful. They found a few coded scrolls, and a stash of Kiri-made rations, which tasted of seaweed, tree bark, and miso. It was a welcome change.

After their impromptu lunch break, they continued on their way to the supply depot, avoiding any shinobi they ran into along the way. They seemed to be streaming en masse towards the coast, although some also seemed to be headed in the direction of the other squad terrorizing Kiri. 

Tsubame was the first to sense the supply depot. Dan applied a quick earth jutsu to dig them a small fort, hidden from view, so that they could observe. 

“At least five squads of six shinobi each,” Tsubame reported. He sketched out a quick plot of their patrol routes in the dirt, while Isuzu held up one of Tsubame’s seal-lights. “There is always one in place here—likely the entrance. Two more patrol a rectangular path around the border of the depot. They encounter each other every twenty minutes. Another is stationed here,” he said, prodding an area inside the compound. “They patrol around and inside this area. My guess would be that the majority of their supplies are here. The other two patrol the inside of the depot. The largest chakra signature, likely the leader, is with the squad that patrols the stretch from the entrance to this other guarded area. The leader is accompanied by shinobi with high-chuunin to low-jounin levels of chakra. The other squad on the interior patrols the edges, and is made up of shinobi of a similar level. The outer patrols are mid to high-chuunin level. Thoughts?” 

“Since we’re going for flash, I’d say hit ‘em hard with the clones. Freak them out a bit,” Sakumo said. “Dan, you go for the big guy before we enter, and keep up the act until they see the clones. Having their commander turn on them will panic them more. We’ll try to keep the clones on the down-low, but once they start catching wind of what’s going on, have them use suicide seals to take out as many as possible and freak out the rest. After that, we’ll head in for cleanup. Leave one of those less experienced chuunin alive to spread the word.” 

Tsubame took a scroll from his waist, and from it produced a bottle of ink and a stack of blank papers. “These will go to your clones,” he said as he began to paint seals onto the paper. “They only take a little chakra to activate, but they’ll produce a blast strong enough to kill or seriously injure anyone close to you. The closer, the better. Try to keep them within five feet. Where are your clones?” 

Narumi shrugged. “Scattered around here and there, underground like we are. I can send another clone to deliver anything to them.” 

“Copy this seal,” Tsubame said, handing a handful of supplies to Narumi. “The rest of you, get some sleep. We’ll launch our attack at night.” 


	4. Chapter 4

“Ten of them are asleep, right here,” Tsubame reported, circling an area on his map. “Two from each squad. Each squad has four members patrolling, for a total of twenty shinobi on patrol. The big guy is still patrolling this stretch right here. He’s front and center, with three others fanned out behind him. Is that enough to get him, Dan?” 

Dan nodded. “Should be. If not, I can use one of the others to take him down.” Dan made a hand seal and, moments later, his body slumped against the wall. 

“Ten minutes,” Sakumo said. Isuzu shifted nervously. 

They waited with bated breath, anxiously awaiting any sign that things had gone wrong, until at long last, Sakumo said, “That’s ten. Send in the clones.” 

Narumi made a clone, which exited their little fort and ran off to find the other clones. As he peered out into the darkness, he could barely make out figures running towards the depot. Some fell into traps, only to dispel instantly. Memories rushed through him as clones dispelled. 

“Traps around the perimeter,” he reported. “Capture, not kill, mostly pits and rope traps. A few noise traps, but they’ve been disabling those as they go.” A loud explosion resounded through the air, and flames lit up the sky. Moments later, screams and shouts and the clash of metal on metal resounded through the air. “That would be the sleeping shinobi,” he said, and then winced. “Or what remains of them anyways. One of the clones decided to get the drop on them with a suicide jutsu.” 

Dan, beside them, gasped back to awareness. “That explosion shocked them for a bit,” he reported. “I managed to take out the rest of his squad, but then he sustained a fatal injury at the hands of the other squad patrolling the interior.” 

“Nicely done,” Sakumo said. “Now let’s move before they get a chance to recover!” 

Explosions lit their way as they traversed the trap-covered ground. Narumi caught sight of Sakumo summoning his three wolves, who howled with delight and raced into the fray. Dan made a few hand seals and sank into the earth, probably to approach from below. 

“Namikaze-senpai!” Isuzu called out. “If I get that squad over there in a genjutsu, will you help take them out?” 

“Good idea!” Narumi replied, turning to head towards a group of four shinobi that were fairing pretty well against the flood of clones. As he watched, they began to stumble and miss, their perceptions of their surroundings thrown off. Narumi had to give the kid props—it was a simple genjutsu, but effective as long as you didn’t give them time to notice. 

And he didn’t. Narumi launched himself at the nearest of them, knocking him out with a blow to the head with the blunt side of a kunai and flinging a series of shuriken at the woman beside him. She blocked half of them, but the genjutsu threw her off enough that one caught her in the eye and another in the throat. A third shinobi screamed as he was enveloped in flame. The fourth freed himself from the technique, but too late, as one of the wolves leapt onto his back and tore out his throat. Isuzu screamed, and Narumi whirled around to see a shinobi throw two kunai at the boy. He parried one of them, but the other collided with his goggles and cracked the lens. Narumi caught the moment instinct took over as Isuzu flung out a series of shuriken. The shinobi stumbled back, and Narumi grabbed hold of him and slit his throat. 

“You okay, kid?” Narumi asked. 

Isuzu tore off the goggles and tossed them to the side. “They’re broken!” he declared. 

“Trust me, better them than you,” Narumi said. “A kunai to the eye at that range means losing an eye is about the best you can hope for. C’mon, stick close to me.” 

The inside of the compound was both flooded and on fire, and the ground was broken up and jagged where earth jutsu had torn it apart. Narumi glimpsed a flash of crackling lightning out of the corner of his eye, and then the world was silent and still. 

Tsubame trudged through the muddy water towards them. “Check through the supplies and tag them with explosives,” he said, passing out stacks of explosive tags to the two of them. “Dan and Sakumo are searching the bodies.” 

“Can I make them blow up?” Isuzu asked, trying and failing to hide his eagerness. 

Tsubame looked him up and down. “I suppose, if you’re very careful,” he said. “I’ll teach you how once you have them all set up.” 

Isuzu whooped and splashed off towards the nearest pile of supplies. “I better go make sure he doesn’t blow them up before we salvage what we can,” Narumi chuckled. 

“I think this is the most excited I’ve seen him since he joined us,” Tsubame said wryly. “I should have known. Pyromaniacs, the lot of them.” 

“You know how it is. Giant water dragons are cool and all, but nothing tops a good old explosive tag,” Narumi said.

Loud splashes and squelching noises heralded Sakumo’s arrival. “Whose idea was it to flood the place?” he complained. “Ran is pissed at me for ruining her coat!” 

“Not the other two?” Tsubame asked. 

“You kidding? They’re practically overgrown puppies, they had a blast.” Sakumo paused. “Don’t tell them I said that.” 

Tsubame sighed. “Don’t you have something to be doing, Sakumo?” 

“Oh, yeah.” Sakumo rifled through his pockets and tossed a small book at Narumi. “Take a look.” 

Narumi opened the book and quickly recognized it as a bingo book. He flipped through it quickly, only pausing on the faces he recognized. The Uzukage had a page, as did the would-be Sannin and the rest of his companions, bar Isuzu. At the back of the book, on a page that had clearly been recently added, he had to double-take at the face and name that greeted him. “Narumi Uzumaki,” he read. “The One-Man-Army.” 

Sakumo grinned and clapped him on the back. “Congrats, you got your first bounty! It’s not as high as any of ours yet, but it’s up there.” 

“Dan’s is the highest, isn’t it?” Tsubame said, as he peered at the page curiously. “Hmm. That’s a decent bounty, for a new entry. Word of what you did at Uzushio must have spread.” 

“They got my name wrong,” he said. 

“Well, you are an Uzumaki,” Tsubame said. “This is for the best anyways.” 

“What do you mean?” Narumi asked. 

“If you have a bounty, people are likely to go after you. If they’re especially motivated, or if they want revenge, they might even go after your family. The Uzumaki are a large enough clan that targeting immediate family isn’t practical, but you have a younger brother in Konoha, don’t you? Namikaze isn’t a common name—it wouldn’t take long for some shinobi out for revenge to connect the dots. It’s safer for him not to be connected to you by name,” Tsubame explained. 

Sakumo nodded sagely. “It’s true. A lot of shinobi from small civilian families drop their last name or take a new one so people don’t try to get revenge on their family members.” 

“Huh. I didn’t know that,” Narumi said. 

“We’ll call you Uzumaki in the field,” Tsubame said. “Now that you have their attention, we should avoid bringing that connection up if at all possible, at least until he’s old enough to defend himself.” 

Narumi shuddered at the thought of Minato being captured and killed because of a connection to him. “Yeah, let’s avoid that.” 

“There you are,” Dan called, sloshing through the water as he approached them. “I’ve finished my search.” 

Sakumo’s brow creased. “Dan? Weren’t you with Isuzu?” 

“No,” Dan said, blinking at him in confusion. “I haven’t seen him. I thought he was with Tsubame and Narumi.” 

“Shit,” Sakumo said, and the four of them launched into motion. 

“This way, I sense him!” Tsubame said, leading the way further into the compound. 

Sakumo sniffed the air. “Blood,” he said grimly, and darted forward, drawing his tanto. 

They reached the back of the compound and rounded a corner to see a Kiri shinobi hunched over a small, prone body. Sakumo disappeared in a swirl of leaves, only to slam into the Kiri shinobi a split second later. Tsubame ignored the brief tussle, instead running straight to Isuzu, Dan hot on his heels. 

Tsubame skidded to his knees and pressed his fingers to Isuzu’s neck. “Still alive,” he said grimly. 

Narumi stepped up beside him and stared down at Isuzu. His left eye was a gaping wound, blood pouring from the empty socket down his face. “Tried to steal his Sharingan and bungled it,” Tsubame said, and gestured to the cut next to his other eye. “We stopped him taking the other one, at least.” 

“Can you heal it?” Dan asked. 

Tsubame grimaced. “If it was whole, I could reattach it. Work like this is too delicate for my seals. Our best bet is bandaging him, giving him some blood pills, and getting him back to Konoha ASAP.” 

“Team Two has a medic, right?” Sakumo said. “Any idea where they are?” 

Tsubame pulled out their mission scroll and tapped the map, which was dotted with various markings. “The last marker they placed has them halfway across Kiri. It’s on the way to the border, though, so we can try to find them. If we don’t, one of us will have to split and take him back.” 

“Sakumo,” Dan said. “You’re the fastest.” 

“And the least mission critical,” Sakumo nodded, with a sharp grin. “I get it, you guys don’t need me hanging around with the One-Man-Army on your side.” 

“If you could leave Gin, Ran, and Jun, however, that would be appreciated.”

They fell silent as Tsubame opened his medic kit, pulled out gauze, bandages, and various other items, and began to tend to Isuzu. He cleaned the wound as best he could in their conditions, bandaged it, and topped it off with a seal. “That should hold until we can get him help,” he said grimly. “As long as we get him help quickly. Narumi, can you carry him?” 

Narumi nodded, and Sakumo and Tsubame loaded Isuzu into his back as quickly as possible without disturbing his injuries. They fell into formation, Narumi in the center, Sakumo taking point, and Dan and Tsubame flanking Narumi from the rear. Once they were sufficiently far away, Tsubame triggered the seals. The resulting explosion was strong enough that Narumi could still feel the heat, and he had no doubt that the sound had summoned any shinobi in the vicinity. 

“That should keep them busy,” Tsubame said grimly. 

They ran, occasionally adjusting their trajectory as Narumi’s clones dispelled or were destroyed, but never stopping. The Kiri shinobi were easy enough to avoid; most of the squads they came across were too distracted to notice the Konoha shinobi darting past them. They made good time to the other end of Kiri, and from there Tsubame was easily able to pick out the chakra of the Uzumaki on the other team. 

The other team, when they found them, had not fared nearly so well as they had; they were down one member, one of the ones from Konoha, and the other had a faintly dazed, shell-shocked look to him. One of the blue-haired twins was carrying the other on his back, and the orange-haired Uzumaki had lost her left arm from the elbow down. 

Their team fell into step beside them. “I called a retreat,” the Uzumaki said grimly to Tsubame. 

Tsubame nodded once, sharply. “Our Uchiha needs to be taken to Konoha ASAP. Can you make it?” 

She thought for a moment. “I can get him as far as Uzushio at least, but I’ll take him further if I can. Strap him to me so I don’t drop him.” 

They halted just long enough to tie Isuzu to the Uzumaki’s back with torn strips of cloth and bandages, and then the other team took off again, leaving them huddled in an underground shelter to plan their next move. 

Tsubame spread out the scroll and the map, and surveyed it thoughtfully. “It seems like they already hit everything in our immediate vicinity,” he said. “We could backtrack to where we were and see what we can find—no word from ANBU on potential targets.” 

Once everyone had examined the scroll to their satisfaction, Tsubame closed it with a snap and a determined nod. “All right,” he said. “Let’s keep going.” 

***

They wreaked havoc across Kiri for another eight days before, just after a skirmish with some Kiri ANBU, Tsubame announced, “Message from the Uzukage.” 

Narumi looked up from where he had been rifling through a fallen jounin’s pockets and stuffed a pilfered pack of gum—a rare treat—into his pocket. “What’s she say?” 

Tsubame scanned the scroll once, then twice, before closing it. “We’re being recalled. ANBU accomplished its mission, and all operatives are accounted for.” 

Sakumo stretched and grimaced as his back made a series of popping noises. “Good. The sooner we’re out of here, the better. I need real trees over my head, damn it.” 

“Is there anything we should hit on our way out?” Dan asked.

Tsubame shook his head. “No. Uzukage-sama wants us back ASAP.” 

Sakumo grimaced. “How ASAP is ASAP?” 

Tsubame gave them a humorless smile. “Yesterday, preferably.” 

“About as ASAP as it gets, then.” Sakumo sighed and began to stretch. “Get your rest while you can, boys, we’ve got a long run ahead of us.” 

“Let’s finish up here, then move out,” Tsubame ordered. 

They quickly raided the remaining bodies, grabbing anything useful or important. After a quick meal of stale rations and soldier pills, they took off as fast as they could while still saving their stamina. This time, they were careful not to draw enemy attention, and steered clear of any towns or guard stations. They managed to make it out of Kiri without incident—most Kiri ninja seemed too distracted to pay attention to the enemy shinobi racing by—and were soon out on the ocean again, dashing over waves and whirlpools. 

Narumi got into a groove after the first hour or so, focused on nothing but regulating his chakra so he didn’t plunge into a whirlpool and keeping pace with the others. At their top speeds, it didn’t take long to reach Uzushio, although they all had to pop soldier pills to keep going. All of them could have done with a rest, but the moment they stepped foot on shore, they were ushered straight to the Uzukage’s office. 

“Diversion Squad One, Uzukage-sama,” the ANBU escorting them announced. 

She looked up as they entered, relief clear in her eyes for a moment before it was suppressed. “Good,” she said briskly. “ANBU has completed the objective, but we anticipate retaliation from Kiri. That brings us to your next mission—protection detail.” 

None of them complained, because they were professionals, but a quick glance at the others told Narumi they likely had some choice remarks to make in private. 

Tsubasa handed a scroll to Tsubame, who read through it with a frown, the kind that meant he was displeased and trying to hide it. He handed the scroll to Sakumo, who in turn handed it to Dan. Neither of them looked particularly happy about it. 

Narumi skimmed through the scroll quickly. It contained information on three children, all between the ages of three and seven. Judging by their names, the three-year-old and five-year-old were siblings, while the seven-year-old was unrelated. The scroll didn’t have any other information, though, so he wasn’t sure why the others were so upset. Unless protection detail was code for something unpleasant. 

“These children,” Tsubasa said, “are the three youngest children of the Mizukage and Daimyo of Kiri. The next four oldest have been taken to Konoha. The Mizukage has one remaining child, as does the Daimyo. They will be eager to recapture their children. Your duties will be to guard the children and ensure no attempts to rescue them or kill them succeed. They are being held at the Uzumaki compound, where you will reside for the duration of the mission. I leave the details to your discretion. Questions?” 

“No, Uzukage-sama,” they chorused. 

“Good. I suggest you clean up before reporting in.” Her eyes returned immediately to her desk, already skimming over a report. “Dismissed.” 

They left in silence, and didn’t speak until they could no longer see the administration building. 

“Well, now we know what ANBU was up to,” Sakumo said, his voice carefully empty of emotion. 

“It’s a logical decision,” Tsubame said in the same manner. “The Daimyo and Mizukage will think twice about attacking while their children are at risk, and it gives us something to hold over their heads during negotiations.” 

“That doesn’t mean I have to like it,” Dan murmured, so quietly Narumi had to strain to hear him. Tsubame gave a sharp nod, but said nothing. 

They trooped on in silence for a while, until Sakumo said, “So, are you putting us up, or are we going to have to rent a room?” 

Tsubame rolled his eyes. “Good luck finding a room. Half the shinobi in the village are still living out of the barracks. The civilians and genin all have housing, but that leaves the majority of the chuunin and jounin. You’ll be staying with me, of course.” 

“Fancy,” Sakumo teased. “We get to stay with the  _ Young Lord _ .” 

“Don’t start,” Tsubame sighed, in the tone of voice of someone who knew very well that the imminent mocking could not be stopped. 

Narumi took pity on him and decided to head Sakumo off at the pass. “Young Lord?” 

“Don’t you know?” Sakumo said gleefully. “Tsubasa is the Uzumaki clan head, but she doesn’t have any children, so Tsubame here is the heir. His bedroom is as big as my apartment. There’s a whole room just for eating in. Meanwhile, I eat sitting on my bed, using a milk crate as a table.” 

“Spending all your money on diamond rings instead of new furniture might have something to do with that,” Dan noted. 

Sakumo’s expression shifted from teasing to sappy at once. “But it was worth it,” he sighed as he gazed into the distance. 

Tsubame shot Dan a grateful look while Sakumo was distracted by whatever fantasies he was entertaining. “This way,” he said, motioning them along. 

More and more Uzumaki appeared as they walked down the streets—there was no gate or wall marking the compound, but Narumi assumed they must have entered it at some point. Orange and red-haired children darted through the streets, likely running home to eat dinner. Adults, he noted, were more scarce, and those he did see were mostly injured, elderly, or civilian. More than one child remained outside even as the sun sank below the horizon, sitting on rooftops and the edge of canals and eating seafood roasted on sticks. They waved and called out greetings as the group passed, the more daring ones asking for Tsubame to show them a cool seal or jutsu. 

“Later,” Tsubame promised each one. “I’m on a mission.” 

The children left them alone upon hearing that, so they managed to make it to their destination largely unbothered. Tsubame’s house was large, as Sakumo had said, but it was far from empty. Even outside, Narumi could hear the sound of cheerful conversation, which only increased in volume as they entered the house. He quickly realized the reason; every room Tsubame led them through was filled with bedrolls, the house turned into an impromptu barracks for people left without housing after the attack on Uzushio. Not all of them were Uzumaki, either—Narumi noted more than one head of blue, brown, or black hair. 

Tsubame’s bedroom was the only one free of extra bedrolls, but not for long. It took them moments to drop their gear and set up their bedrolls, and by then the room was just as crowded as the ones they had walked through earlier. Even Tsubame laid out his bedroll—Narumi suspected his bedding had long since been given up to some of the guests. 

Unloaded of their burdens and keenly aware of how long it had been since they bathed now that they were in an enclosed space, the four of them raced to the baths and eagerly stripped of their uniforms—Narumi didn’t even want to think about what some of those stains were. He was pretty sure they were better off burning them and requisitioning new ones than attempting to clean them. 

Narumi was the first into the bath, although Sakumo was quick to join him. 

“I’m so jealous,” Sakumo moaned as he sank into the water. “I can’t believe you have a private bath. I have to go to the public bathhouse.” 

“I think the fact that you live in a dump could be blamed for that,” Dan commented. 

“Doesn’t matter,” he said, waving a hand idly. “Kaede’s grandparents left her a beautiful house. You know, the one with the wisteria. Once the war is over, we’re going to get a genin team to fix it up. It has plenty of bedrooms, too. Master bedroom, then three spare rooms, so the kids won’t have to share.” 

“You don’t have kids,” Tsubame said, as he slipped into the water between Dan and Narumi. 

“I will,” Sakumo said cheerfully. “Three of them. We’ve got names picked out for the first one already.” 

Dan smiled wistfully. “That’s wonderful. Tsunade and I want kids as well, of course—but we’ll have to see how things go with the hospital. There’s so much to do.” 

Tsubame sighed as he untied his hair from its usual bun, letting the long strands drift through the water. “Tell me about it. As soon as this war is over, every shinobi from genin to jounin is going to be drafted into the rebuilding effort.” 

“What about you, Narumi? Any plans?” Dan asked. 

Narumi hummed thoughtfully. He had plans, of course—more than he could safely share. “Yeah, some,” he said, idly twining a red strand around his finger. “I want to stay in Uzushio, but do you think the Uzukage would let me visit Konoha to see Minato?” 

He glanced up at Tsubame, who seemed to be distracted—he was staring very intently at the opposite wall. “Tsubame?” he prompted. 

Tsubame jerked to attention. “What? Oh. Yes, probably. It’s not uncommon for Uzushio shinobi to visit Konoha.” 

“Great!” Narumi said. “I’d like to get to know him. He’s my little brother, ya know!” 

“I pity him already,” Tsubame said, dry as the desert. He dunked his hair into the water one last time before climbing out of the bath. “We should be going.” 

Sakumo groaned, but nevertheless hauled himself out. “You’re a slave-driver, Tsubame.” 

“If we stayed in there any longer, we would never get out,” Tsubame said as he tossed each of them a towel. 

“You know I hate it when you’re reasonable,” Sakumo said. 

The four of them quickly scrubbed off and got dressed; to Narumi’s pleasant surprise, their old clothing had been replaced by fresh, Uzushio-issue uniforms. They weren’t all that different from Konoha uniforms, really, except that they were a slightly lighter shade of blue. Honestly, they could have been bright pink and he wouldn’t have cared so long as they were clean. 

All too soon, they were heading away from the bathhouse, through the streets of what Narumi was coming to consider the Uzumaki part of town, rather than the Uzumaki compound—he still hadn’t seen any walls anywhere. This time, Tsubame didn’t lead them to his house, but to a smaller house behind it. As they approached, Narumi caught sight of a few ANBU, hiding in shadow. Another two were inside, one of them looming over a pot of stew in the kitchen, the other staring down a trio of children. Two of them sat frozen in their chairs, hardly daring to breathe let alone move, while the youngest cried his eyes out. 

Tsubame swept into the room without a moment’s hesitation, dismissing the ANBU with a flick of his fingers. “Dan, Sakumo—one of you take care of him, the other talk to the other two. Narumi, I want your clones stationed around the house. Take a look around and see what we have for them. Clothes, books, toys, toothpaste and toothbrushes, soap and shampoo—anything they don’t have, we’ll send someone to buy tomorrow.” He sampled the stew, grimaced, and dumped the goopy mess into the trash. “Tastes like field rations.” 

As Tsubame raided the cabinets—which were thankfully stocked with food—Narumi sent a horde of shadow clones out into the world. Sakumo approached the youngest boy, who took one look at him and started screaming. Sakumo quickly changed paths, instead kneeling in front of the two older children. Dan bravely picked up the screaming boy, only to get kicked in the chin by a flailing foot. 

“This is more difficult than they make it sound in books,” he commented, as he attempted to keep the wriggling, screaming boy right side up and simultaneously prevent him from kicking or hitting Dan in the face too much. 

“Oh, for—Narumi, keep chopping these vegetables. And stir that soup.” 

Narumi somehow found himself holding a knife in one hand and a spoon in the other, and had to rush to the counter to catch a carrot before it rolled over the edge. When he wasn’t in danger of dropping any vegetables or stabbing himself with the knife, he looked up to find that in all of five minutes, Tsubame had somehow managed to silence the toddler and was now carrying him while he contentedly chewed on Tsubame’s hair. 

“How’d you do that?” Narumi asked. 

Tsubame poured a variety of spices into the soup and stirred it all together. “Live with the Uzumaki long enough and you’ll get plenty of experience with screaming children. He didn’t even try to stab me with a kunai.” 

“Mama,” the boy said. 

“I’m not your mama,” Tsubame said, in the tone of voice of someone who knew that a venture was doomed. 

“Mlem,” the boy said, around a drooly mouthful of hair. 

Narumi glanced over at the others—Sakumo was entertaining the other two with some sort of lightning trick that was making their hair stand on end, and Dan was talking to one of Narumi’s shadow clones—before returning to his newest duty as a shinobi: sous-chef. 

The boy babbled something. Narumi had absolutely no idea what he said. “You’re correct,” Tsubame said. “I think that is plenty of carrot. Give that here, Narumi—if these children have been living on ANBU cooking, I have no doubt they’re starving.” 

Sure enough, the moment their food was placed in front of them, the children fell upon it like starving animals. They finished half the pot between them, and promptly fell asleep at the table. They didn’t stir when Sakumo and Dan bundled them into futons, or when the shinobi began to talk quietly at the table, leaving the door to the bedroom open so they could keep an eye on the kids. 

Sakumo ran a hand through his hair. “Seriously,” he muttered. “What the hell is the Uzukage thinking, kidnapping kids?” 

“It’s an effective tactic,” Tsubame said grimly. “She told me she got the idea from something you did, Narumi.” 

“What, me?” 

“How did she even have time to tell you that?” Sakumo asked. 

Tsubame rolled his eyes and tapped his scroll, the one linked with Tsubasa’s. “It’s easier to talk privately through this. Apparently one of the jounin and the chuunin you captured were actually Chiyo’s son and daughter-in-law. She’s been a lot more reluctant to attack now that they’re in Konoha’s hands. Things are almost over on the Suna front.” 

“So they thought the same tactic might finish things in Kiri,” Dan surmised. “It makes sense, although it is unpleasant.” 

Sakumo looked through the bedroom door. “These kids have nothing to do with the war, except for what their parents did.” 

“And we’ll make sure the war doesn’t touch them more than it already has,” Tsubame said. “The ANBU have a watch, but we should organize our own, just in case.” 

As it turned out, their watch wasn’t really necessary. A few enemy shinobi attempted to either rescue or capture the kids, but ANBU always took care of them before they got anywhere near the house. They took to spending their shared watches playing cards or, in the case of Tsubame and Narumi, holding lessons on fuinjutsu. 

“Until now, I’ve just been having you memorize arrays. We haven’t had time for anything else,” Tsubame said as he set a pile of scrolls, an inkwell, and several brushes on the table. “At the moment, we have enough time for you to learn properly instead of simply memorizing and copying. So, paper, ink, brush, and a list of seal components. Start experimenting. I’ll stop you if it looks like you’re about to blow the house up.” 

With that, Tsubame unfurled a scroll and started to draw a seal of his own on it. Narumi looked between him and the supplies lying on the table. “What, just go for it?” 

“You have the basics down by now,” Tsubame said. “Trial and error will teach you the rest. Unless you’d rather sit through a detailed lecture on what each and every component does on its own and in combination with other components?” 

Narumi shuddered. Just the mention of a lecture brought back memories of sitting inside a cramped, stuffy classroom on days when he could have been running around outside. “No thanks.” 

“That’s what I thought,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi glanced over the list of components Tsubame had left on the table. He recognized most of the components from the arrays Tsubame had made him copy, and some of them he was passingly familiar with, but he couldn’t even begin to list the functions of some of them. He started by drawing he Uzumaki spiral—that, at least, he knew was usually used as a base. He started adding a few components that he recognized. He wasn’t sure what the seal would do, but hopefully it wouldn’t do something horrible if he activated it. 

He’d show it to Tsubame first just in case. 

“What in the world are you making?” 

Narumi looked up to find Tsubame leaning over his shoulder, peering down at the array on Narumi’s scroll with a furrowed brow. “Not sure,” he said. “Something cool, I hope.” 

“Well, it doesn’t look like it will kill us all,” Tsubame said, after a moment more of squinting at the array. 

“Let’s try it out, then,” Narumi said.

He lowered his hand to the array. 

“Wait!” Tsubame said, reaching out to grab Narumi’s hand. 

Tsubame’s hand landed on Narumi’s right as the array activated, the ink flaring blue for a moment. 

Other than that, nothing happened. 

Tsubame sighed. “Well, we aren’t dead yet. Next time, wait until I actually tell you to activate it. I can’t tell how it will react in a single glance. I’m an expert in medical seals, not whatever abomination you created. ” 

“Right. Sorry.” Narumi laughed sheepishly. 

Tsubame pulled his hand away. Narumi’s hand moved with it. 

The two of them stared at their hands. Tsubame moved his hand to the side; Narumi’s hand moved as well. Narumi tried to pull his hand away, only to bring Tsubame along too. 

Tsubame pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand. “This is why we wait to activate our seals,” he muttered. 

Narumi waved his hand up and down slightly. “Sorry. Wow, they’re really stuck.” 

Tsubame forced their hands to be still. “Cut that out. We have to figure out how to reverse this. Sit still while I look at the seal.” 

Narumi leaned back in his chair while Tsubame pulled the array closer and leaned over it, absentmindedly tucking a strand of red hair behind one ear. Tsubame chewed on his lower lip as he ran a finger along the outside of the array, clearly deep in thought. He was pretty cute when he was concentrating. 

Sakumo walked out of the bedroom, yawning and scratching his stomach. “Hey, Tsubame, what’s for breakfast?” 

Narumi looked at Tsubame, who was leaning in so close to the seal that his nose was almost touching it. He was muttering to himself too quietly for Narumi to make out the words. “I think you’re on your own,” he said to Sakumo. 

“Plain rice it is,” Sakumo said. He trudged to the kitchen and began to putter around. “I have no idea how Kaede and I are going to survive. Neither of us can cook.” 

“Me neither,” Narumi said. He’d gotten pretty used to living on instant food, takeout, and field rations over the years. 

“The life of a bachelor,” Sakumo sighed, the last word ending in a yawn that threatened to split his face in half. 

Tsubame chewed on the end of the brush. “You’re gonna give yourself splinters,” Narumi said.

“Shut up, nee-chan,” Tsubame muttered. Narumi snickered. 

After awhile, Sakumo came over with two bowls of rice and slid one across the table to Narumi. Narumi took the chopsticks with a free hand; thankfully, his right hand was free, and his left hand was stuck to Tsubame’s right hand. 

“So, you and Tsubame,” Sakumo said, with a pointed look at their hands. “Did you . . . you know?” 

“What?” 

Sakumo’s eyebrows waggled up and down. “You know.” 

“Oh! Uh, no, our hands are just stuck together because of a seal accident,” Narumi said. 

Sakumo sighed. “Damn. Here I thought you’d finally got yourselves sorted out.” He laughed. “‘Seal accident.’ Nice one.” 

Narumi snorted, and ended up hacking and coughing as rice went up his nose. 

Entirely oblivious, Tsubame said, “Well, you seem to have created something that sticks two or more objects together, which has the potential to be quite useful. On the other hand, you added a time dependency clause of some sort, which means it will wear off in either 24 minutes, 24 hours, or 24 days.” 

“I think it’s been more than 24 minutes,” Narumi noted. 

“Hours or days, then,” Tsubame said. “I’m going to start working on something to cancel the effect. I am not going to go around stuck to you for almost an entire month.” 

“Ah, that would cause some problems,” Sakumo said. 

“We’re in the middle of a war. I think it would cause more than  _ some problems _ .” 

“At least we’re not on the front lines anymore.” Sakumo laughed. “Although the Kiri nin might be confused enough that you could get a few hits in before they pulled themselves together.” 

“This does mean, however, that meal preparations will be complicated,” Tsubame said. “Sakumo. Go out and buy food. Something that even you can make.” 

Sakumo gave him a mockingly deep bow. “Yes, young master. Whatever you want, young master.” 

Tsubame threw some sort of booklet at his head. “Get out of my home, you menace.” 

Sakumo, still laughing, snatched the booklet out of the air and slipped out the door. Narumi caught a brief glimpse of one of the ANBU guarding the house before the door closed again. 

Tsubame sighed and shook his head, tossing back strands of red hair. “Finally, some quiet.” 

“Until everyone else wakes up at least,” Narumi said. 

“I wish. Those children never say a word. I never know what they want.” Tsubame tossed his head as if shaking off those thoughts and shot a glare down at the seal in front of him. “This, at least, is a relatively easy problem to solve.” 

Tsubame reached back to pull his hair into a ponytail, inadvertently taking Narumi’s hand along with him. Strands of Tsubame’s hair slid through his fingers as his hand was pulled along, as smooth and fine as silk. 

“Huh. Your hair’s really soft,” Narumi said. 

Tsubame jerked his hands away from his head like he’d been electrocuted. 

“Sorry, sorry,” Narumi laughed. “I can’t help it.” 

Tsubame glared down at their attached hands. “Let’s solve this problem as soon as possible.” 

He set to work, giving Narumi another seal that he deemed vitally important to Narumi’s education in the sealing arts. Narumi worked on it with half of his attention, the other half devoted to the warmth of Tsubame’s hand against his and the cute way Tsubame bit his lip when he was frustrated. After a while, he got bored of working on the seal and started making up his own—although he would definitely have Tsubame thoroughly check them over before activating them. 

All too soon, however, another problem arose. He’d tried to ignore it, but it was unavoidable.

Naruto nudged Tsubame. “Hey, Tsubame. I’ve got to piss.” 

Tsubame looked to the ceiling as if beseeching an unseen god. “This is the worst thing to have ever happened to me.” 


	5. Chapter 5

“I have returned—whoa, what happened here?” 

Narumi shrugged helplessly as Tsubame furiously scribbled away on a scroll. Their disastrously embarrassing trip to the bathroom had taken ten minutes, and Tsubame had only grown increasingly irritated since then. Narumi suspected that Tsubame now had to use the bathroom as well, but was resisting giving into the inevitable out of sheer stubbornness. “What’d you get?” 

Sakumo tossed the booklet onto Tsubame’s lap and then dumped a bag on the table, upending it so its contents spilled out. “Spoils of war, my friend!” 

Narumi had expected him to come back with a bag of rice and some fish, and maybe some vegetables, not several items wrapped in brightly colored paper or stored in cardboard boxes. He opened one curiously and found three grilled squid on skewers, like the ones he sometimes saw kids eating on the side of the canal. 

Tsubame looked up as one of the items rolled across his scroll and sighed. “Sakumo. You didn’t.” 

“What? Those little genin looked so cute, selling stuff by the side of the road. I couldn’t resist!” 

“I said to buy groceries, not snacks and street food!” Tsubame sighed and shoved a clumsily wrapped package away from his scroll so he could roll it up. “I suppose I’ll have to go out myself. Narumi, you can carry the bags.” 

“Sir, yes, sir,” Narumi said, as he was tugged out of his chair along with Tsubame. Tsubame retrieved a few bags from the kitchen, most likely to carry their purchases, and nearly dragged Narumi out the door. 

“Slow down, Tsubame,” Narumi laughed as he quickened his pace so they were walking side by side. “The groceries won’t go anywhere.” 

“We should get there before the good fish are all taken,” Tsubame said. “They’ve probably already been picked clean of the best catches of the day, but if we hurry we should be able to find some good ones. I’m not holding out much hope for vegetables. Maybe they’ll still have rice, but we have to hurry.” 

As they hurried through the village, people called out greetings to Tsubame and cast curious glances at Narumi. A few people even waved cheerfully at Narumi, evidently recognizing him from somewhere. Or maybe they were just friendly. 

“People here sure are nice,” he remarked to Tsubame. 

“Well, you are an Uzumaki,” Tsubame said. “Some of them can sense that, like I can. Sensors aren’t uncommon among our clan. As far as they’re concerned, that makes you family.” 

A smile spread across Narumi’s face, unbidden. “Family, huh?” 

He couldn’t help but look around, grinning goofily at all the colorful heads of hair running past him. As their eyes met his, they smiled in return, even if he had no idea who they were. After a moment, Narumi looked back to Tsubame, catching a brief glimpse of his reddened cheeks before Tsubame turned around and yanked Narumi back down the street. 

“Hurry up, before everything is gone. If we miss out, you’re waking up at four in the morning tomorrow to accompany me during the morning rush.” 

Having grown up in Konoha, Narumi first expected to end up in a supermarket of some sort, only to realize that they probably didn’t have supermarkets yet, in which case it would probably be a series of stores, each geared towards a specialized item. He didn’t expect, however, for Tsubame to pull him onto a wide street running alongside the widest canal Narumi had seen so far. Boats filled the canal, strung together to avoid drifting away, and people walked freely from one boat to another along narrow makeshift walkways. 

Tsubame sighed. “Ah, we already missed the rush. Well, we’ll see what’s left.” 

Narumi followed him onto one of the boats; there were a few people on each boat, so he wouldn’t say it the canal was all that empty. “What’s it like during the rush?” 

“Oh, you can hardly move. Shinobi arts are strictly forbidden, including minor chakra manipulation to walk on the water, unless it’s an emergency. We had a few too many instances of shinobi trying to cut in line.” Tsubame surveyed the fish being offered by the man running the boat-shop. “These three here, and that one over there, please.” 

“Of course, Tsubame-sama,” the man said. “Come again!” 

Once the fish were nicely wrapped up in plain paper, they left that boat by crossing over the one next to it, which seemed to be selling crockery. The next was selling clothing, and the one next to that was selling fabric. They stopped on a boat selling a sparse collection of vegetables: a few lumpy yams, some crooked carrots, a small, sad collection of mushrooms, a handful of roots, and two small bags of rice. 

“Tsubame-sama, welcome. Let me put something together for you,” the shopkeeper said. “No mushrooms again?” 

“I’ll take the mushrooms this time,” Tsubame said. “And some for my friend, too.” 

The shopkeeper turned a cheerful, if tired, smile at Narumi. “Welcome! Any friend of Tsubame-sama’s is a friend of mine. I’ll need your ration books.” 

While Narumi attempted to remember if he had ever been given a ration book, Tsubame produced two thin booklets and handed them to the shopkeeper, who removed a few slips of paper from each before handing them back. 

“I held onto yours for you,” Tsubame explained. “I didn’t anticipate taking you along for the grocery shopping.” 

“What about Dan and Sakumo?” 

Tsubame grimaced. “They’re from Konoha, so they aren’t covered. At least my rations were increased because of the kids . . . I think I can make it work.” 

The shopkeeper placed a wrapped package on the table and patted it firmly. “There we go, wrapped up safe and sound. Have a nice day.” 

“Thank you. Now, let’s see what else we can find.” 

Narumi followed Tsubame through the boats, idly browsing as Tsubame examined each and every shop. Most they passed through, with a brief stop at a shop that was evidently meant to be a bakery but was only selling a few small bags of flour, sugar, salt, and a few tiny jars of yeast. Their final stop took them to a fruit stand, with offerings as meager as the rest of the food shops. 

As the woman wrapped their purchase, Narumi spotted a small potted plant with long, thick leaves on the counter. When he leaned close to examine it, he noticed that someone had written “Jirojiro-san” on the pot. It was a completely different plant, but it still reminded him of Ukki-kun, the plant he had given to Kakashi a lifetime ago, and he couldn’t help but smile and pick it up. 

“You have a good eye!” the woman chirped. 

“It’s an aloe vera, right?” he asked. 

She nodded. “That’s right. I got it from some merchants that passed through Suna. I don’t think I’m taking very good care of it, through.” 

“Nah, you’re doing great,” Narumi said, setting it back down on the table. “I’m pretty good with desert plants like this.” 

“Wow! You should give me some tips.” 

Narumi sheepishly rubbed at the back of his head. “Hehe, sure.” 

A sudden jerk at his hand pulled him to the side. “We should go,” Tsubame said sharply. 

“Come again!” the shopkeeper called after them. 

Tsubame pulled Narumi along in silence, speeding up whenever Narumi tried to walk next to him, until Narumi could no longer hear the din of the marketplace. 

“Uh, Tsubame?” Narumi asked. “You trying to run away with my hand?” 

Tsubame deliberately slowed down. “My apologies.” They were side-by-side, now, but Tsubame wasn’t looking at Narumi. “I . . . didn’t know you liked plants.” 

“Oh, yeah, I do. I had a small garden where I grew up, and a bunch of potted plants. It was kind of nice to have something that needed me,” he said with a laugh. “I guess there isn’t much room for a garden here.” 

“Some people have potted plants,” Tsubame said. He hesitated for a moment. “And . . . it’s a bit far from the main village, but there’s a small island that no one’s using right now. I don’t know who used to own it, but they left it to the Uzumaki when they died. No one wanted to live so far from the main compound, so there’s an empty house just sitting there. It probably needs some repairs after all these years but . . . it could be yours. If you wanted it. I know there’s enough space for a garden.” 

“What, really? Come on, let’s check it out!” 

Narumi darted forward, only to be yanked backwards with a yelp as Tsubame pulled his hand back. “We can’t right now! We have to get the groceries home.” 

“Aw, c’mon, Tsubame, live a little! The groceries aren’t gonna go bad if we take a little detour,” Narumi said, giving Tsubame his best pleading expression. 

Tsubame looked away, cheeks slightly pink, and sighed. “Fine, we can go. But we have to be quick about it.” 

He pulled Narumi in the opposite direction from where Narumi had been headed. “This way.” 

The village abruptly stopped without so much as a beach on this side of the island; Narumi could see the barracks docked nearby, and a few people had boats tied up outside their houses. As they stepped out onto the water, he could see a few boats in the distance, skillfully avoiding the whirlpools. 

Salty water sprayed across his face as they ran. At first he couldn’t see much of anything, but eventually he could make out a small, flat shape in the distance. It increased in size as they approached, until he could make out a protrusion from the shape, and then that the protrusion was in fact a house, and then the details of the island itself. 

They stepped from the water onto a small beach, from which a small path led up to the house. A few small trees stood around the house, the kind that were good for thin, whippy branches you could use to attack your friends. The house itself did look to be in need of repairs; the windows and door were missing, and when he looked inside he could tell it was covered with grime. 

Tsubame pulled him around to the back of the house, where there was dirt instead of loose, gritty sand. Narumi knelt, pulling Tsubame down with him, and ran a hand through the dirt. “Yeah, this is pretty good from what I can tell. I think you could grow some stuff here,” he said. 

“You want it, then.” 

Narumi sat on the ground. Tsubame hit the ground beside him with a huff. “Whoops. Sorry. I dunno, maybe. It’s nice.” 

“It is. And I suppose it might be good to have you at a distance in case you cause any more mishaps,” Tsubame said. 

“Hey!” Narumi elbowed Tsubame, and then laughed. “What could I say? I just couldn’t bear to be separated from your gorgeous face.” 

“Just my face, hmm?” 

“Well, your personality is a little . . .” He made a face and wiggled his free hand from side to side. Tsubame thumped his fist against Narumi’s shoulder. “Joking, joking!” 

Tsubame huffed and looked away. Narumi laughed and looked up at the sky. “It’s kind of quiet here, though.” 

“You don’t like the quiet?” Tsubame asked, still looking away. 

“Mm, not really. It feels a little isolated, I guess,” Narumi said. 

“The village is only a short walk away. No matter where you live, you’re always welcome in the Uzumaki compound. Besides, I’d come visit you,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi looked at him, eyes wide. “You would?” 

“Of course. You’re my responsibility, aren’t you? My sister told me to keep an eye on you,” Tsubame said. Narumi couldn’t help but notice that the redness on his cheeks spread all the way to the tips of his ears. “And I have to get some time away from my family. You haven’t had time to notice yet, but they have a tendency to be nosy and overbearing at the best of times. Especially the elders.” 

“What, I don’t count as family anymore?” Narumi gave him an exaggerated pout. 

“Well, you know, you’re . . . different,” Tsubame said. “I . . . enjoy spending time with you.” 

The words hung between them for a moment. 

Narumi gave Tsubame a teasing grin. “So, how painful was that for you to say?” 

Tsubame huffed and elbowed him. “See if I ever say anything to you again.”

They fell into silence for a moment, the groceries abandoned at their sides, their hands still stuck between them. 

“I wanted to live here,” Tsubame said. “I used to come here to play as a child, when I wanted to be alone. Most children had parents who wouldn’t allow them to come out this far, but my father was the Uzukage. He spent most of his time running the village or training Tsubasa to be his successor.” 

“What about your mom?” 

“She died giving birth to me.” 

“Oh, the same as me.” Narumi snorted and gave Tsubame a lopsided grin. “What a weird thing to have in common.” 

“It must have been hard, being raised away from your family.” 

Narumi leaned back as much as he could with his hand still attached to Tsubame. “It was at first. But I had my teacher and my friends, and then the old guy who trained me, so it wasn’t all bad. And I found my way here eventually.” 

“You’ll soon have your fill of us,” Tsubame assured him. “Trust me, living in the middle of the compound is a trial at the best of times.” 

“So why don’t you live out here?” Narumi asked. 

“As much as I may want to . . . as the heir to the family, I’m expected to live inside the compound. And Tsubasa is never going to have children, so that will never change.” 

“You should do what you want. Not what other people’s expectations tell you to do,” Narumi said. 

Tsubame sighed. “If only it were that simple.” 

Narumi opened his mouth to speak, but Tsubame interrupted him. “We should be going. It’s getting late. The ANBU will start to wonder what became of us.” 

“Just a little bit longer,” Narumi said. “Come on, you know you want to. Or would you rather go back to babysitting?” 

“Just a little longer,” Tsubame agreed, at last. 

Smiling, Narumi knocked their shoulders together. He remained like that, his shoulder pressed against Tsubame’s, as they stared out over the sea. Caught in the wind, a few strands of Tsubame’s hair glistened in the sunlight, red and orange and yellow. Idly, Narumi reached up with his free hand and let one of the strands wrap itself around his finger. 

“Your hair really is pretty, ya know,” he said. 

“Sh-shut up, Namikaze.” 

Narumi grinned. Once again, Tsubame was as red as his hair, from his cheeks to the tips of his ears. “It’s the truth.” 

Tsubame, still blushing, tucked a strand of hair behind his ear, only to jerk in surprise as Narumi’s hand was brought along and brushed against his hair. 

This close, Narumi was able to see all the little details he’d never noticed before, like the little holes in Tsubame’s ears. Curious, he leaned closer. “You have pierced ears?” 

“Hm? Oh, I do. I’m surprised they haven’t closed up. I don’t wear them on missions,” Tsubame said. “I wouldn’t want to lose them."

"But you're not on a mission now," Narumi said. 

Tsubame gave him a flat look. "I already have children grabbing my hair. I don't need them to grab my ears as well." 

"I guess you've got a point," Narumi sulked. "Aw man, and here I wanted to see you in them." 

A huff of laughter escaped Tsubame. “After all this is over, I’ll wear them again.” 

“I’ll look forward to it.” Narumi looked out over the ocean. “When this is all over, huh . . . when do you think the war will be over?” 

“It’s hard to say, but . . . soon, I think. It’s already been a few years since it started.” Tsubame sighed. “We’ll have a lot of rebuilding to do once everyone is home. If you think it’s crowded and busy now, wait until the war is over. Most of the chuunin and jounin are out of the village.” 

“I’m looking forward to it. A whole village of Uzumaki!” 

Tsubame gave him a small smile. “There are other clans, you know.” 

“Yeah, but!” Narumi waved his hands. “Uzumaki!” 

Tsubame laughed quietly. “You’ll get sick of us soon enough.” 

“You think?” Narumi looked over at Tsubame, at his red hair and sea-blue eyes, and couldn’t help but smile. “I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of you.” 

Tsubame turned his head away, but Narumi could still see that the tips of his ears were red. “Honestly. Stop saying things like that. People will get the wrong idea.” 

“Maybe I want them to.” Tsubame, still looking in the opposite direction, elbowed Narumi firmly. Narumi couldn’t help but laugh. “Sorry, sorry, I’ll talk about something else. Hmm . . . when did you pierce your ears?” 

“Ah. When my genin team took the chuunin exam,” he said. “We passed it all at once, on our first try. Our sensei didn’t let us until he was sure we could pass, so we were thirteen, the oldest ones there. We pierced our ears with fishhooks. We all got infections, of course. Not our finest hour.”

“Ha! So even you do stupid stuff sometimes.” 

“Tsubasa would have a wealth of stories to tell, I assure you. If you ask her, however, I’m afraid I’ll have to kill you.” 

Narumi laughed and leaned against Tsubame. “Still, Tsubame in earrings. I’ll look forward to it. I bet you look even prettier.” 

“I thought I told you to stop saying things like that.” Tsubame looked away, over the ocean, but then turned around to meet Narumi’s eyes. “If you think I’m so pretty, why don’t you pursue Tsubasa?” 

Narumi squinted at Tsubame, trying to discern what he was thinking from his blank face and coming up with nothing. “What? Why would I do that? I don’t like Tsubasa, I like you, ya know.” 

Tsubame was blushing again and avoiding Narumi’s gaze, but Narumi could still see that his blank expression had been replaced with a small smile. “It would be easier.” 

Narumi failed to see how trying to get with the Uzukage would be easier. “Doesn’t matter. Like I said, I like you. Tsubasa’s too scary.” 

Tsubame laughed. “She’d be happy to hear you say that. Speaking of which, we should be going. Tsubasa will have nothing on Sakumo and Dan if we leave them to fend for themselves for much longer.” 

Tsubame stood, but Narumi remained sitting, their joined hand stretching between them. “I’ve become one with the earth. Help me up.” 

Tsubame rolled his eyes. Narumi laughed, only for his laughter to morph into a startled shout as Tsubame yanked upwards, heaving Narumi onto his feet. Narumi stumbled forwards and would have fallen again had he not collided with Tsubame. 

“Geez, warn a guy.” Narumi steadied himself with a hand on Tsubame’s chest. They were almost the same height, Tsubame just slightly shorter, so that he barely had to look down to meet Tsubame’s eyes. This close, with their noses almost brushing, he could make out all the little flecks of different colors in Tsubame’s eyes. It was like every time Narumi took a closer look at him, he got more and more interesting. 

Tsubame’s eyes met Narumi’s and then flicked downwards slightly, landing on Narumi’s lips. Narumi’s breath caught in his throat. His lips felt dry. On reflex, he licked them. 

Tsubame tore his gaze away and stepped back. “We should go.” 

“Oh . . . yeah,” Narumi said, allowing himself to be pulled along to the front of the house and down to the beach. “Maybe we could come back, sometime? It’s pretty nice here, ya know.” 

Tsubame stopped on the beach. Narumi stared at the back of his head. 

Without warning, Tsubame spun around, seizing the front of Narumi’s shirt with his free hand, and tugged Narumi close. Their lips crashed together, their teeth clacking together painfully as Narumi opened his mouth in surprise. Tsubame’s tongue darted into Narumi’s mouth for an all too brief instant before pulling back. 

Narumi found himself gaping at the back of Tsubame’s head as Tsubame stared resolutely at the village, a hand pressed firmly to his mouth. “We should—we should go.” 

Slowly, a grin spread across Narumi’s face. “Uhuh. You sure you don’t need a minute to calm down?” 

“Quite sure.” 

“You’re blushing!” 

“Shut up, Narumi.” 

***

The seal binding their hands wore off after only 24 hours, before Tsubame had a chance to finish his counter seal. As a punishment, he sentenced Narumi to repeatedly draw the same seals over and over until he had them all memorized. It was the worst parts of the Academy all over again—and to make it worse, Tsubame wouldn’t even let him use clones to help memorize them. Narumi was joined in this endeavor by the three-year-old, who took to sealing with the exuberance of someone who had no idea what they were doing and only liked to stick their fingers in the ink and try to eat them. 

Despite the fact that they were looking after kidnapping victims, life in that house wasn’t all that unusual. They quickly fell into a routine, aided by Tsubame’s insistence on holding lessons for the children, and soon it felt almost normal to be looking after three kids with three other guys and a bunch of unseen ANBU. By the end of the third month, Narumi didn’t even blink when he walked out of the bedroom to find Sakumo hoisting two of the kids into the air like they were makeshift weights. 

Tsubame, surprisingly, took care of the bulk of the childcare, organizing meals and baths and lessons, handling all nightmares and tantrums, laying out house rules and enforcing them when they were broken. 

“I’ve taken care of Uzumaki children before,” Tsubame explained, when Narumi asked. “Nothing is as trying as an Uzumaki child that wants nothing more than to fling itself headfirst into the nearest canal or blow itself up with a sealing experiment. At least these ones don’t know any jutsu.” 

In the absence of the ANBU, the kids got more boisterous over time. Narumi didn’t even want to think about what they would be like with jutsu under their belts. It was hard enough keeping them out of trouble as it was. 

Still, sometimes they managed to get breaks. Narumi took to accompanying Tsubame on his weekly trips to the market; if they left early enough and finished quickly, Tsubame occasionally allowed them a few moments alone, and they would walk out to the small island away from the main village before returning. 

In the house in the middle of the bustling Uzumaki compound, surrounded by his friends and the kids, it was almost possible to forget about the war. 

And then the Uzukage walked into their living room, dressed in armor under the robes of her office, sword in hand rather than on her back. 

Tsubame stood and faced her. “Uzukage-sama,” he said, face blank. 

“Kiri is launching an assault on the village,” she said. “As they currently are, the barrier seals won’t even withstand their first attack. I’ve made threats. Now it’s time to make good on them.” 

Her eyes landed on the children, sitting frozen around the table where they had just been eating dinner. 

Tsubame stepped forward until he was close enough that she was easily within striking distance of his sword. His hand rested on the hilt, ready to draw at a moment’s notice. “You might be my Uzukage, but you’re my sister first,” he said. “And I won’t let you do this.”

Neither of them moved. Narumi’s mind raced through the possibilities. Tsubame could hold off Tsubasa, at least for a while, but he couldn’t fight the ANBU at the same time. Narumi, with his clones, could manage that, but that meant Sakumo and Dan would have to grab the kids and make a run for it without anyone to watch their backs. It could work, if they got out before anyone else in the village realized what was going on, but they’d have to be quick. Now, if only Narumi could signal them somehow—

Tsubasa’s hand left her sword. Tsubame’s shoulders relaxed slightly. 

“Tsubame. Namikaze. With me.” Without another word, Tsubasa turned on her heel and left the house.

Narumi fell into step beside Tsubame, both of them following behind Tsubasa as she led them through the village. The canals and streets were crowded with ninja and civilians who all fell silent as Tsubasa passed them. 

They stopped on a beach. In the distance, Narumi could see a horde of shinobi approaching over the water. 

Tsubasa turned to Tsubame and looked at him for a long moment before turning to Narumi. “Namikaze. You saved my brother’s life once. I never thanked you for it. So, thank you.” 

She removed her robes, draping them over one arm, and then took off her hat. Tsubame stepped forward and grabbed her arm. “Nee-chan, you can’t. You’re the Uzukage. The village needs you.” 

“I’ve always been a warrior,” Tsubasa said. “That’s how I keep Uzushio safe. But more than a warrior, our village needs a healer. They’re going to need you, Tsubame.” 

Tsubasa swept the robe around, setting it on Tsubame’s shoulders, and then took one last, long look at the hat before placing it on Tsubame’s head. “Take care of the village for me, Uzukage-sama. And you, Namikaze—look after my brother.” 

Tsubasa stepped out onto the waves without a backwards glance as Tsubame sank to his knees in the sand. 

Narumi watched as Tsubasa broke into a run, moving almost too fast for him to see her. He looked down at Tsubame. “Should we help her?” 

Tsubame said nothing, just stared after Tsubasa, and after a moment Narumi turned back to the sea as well. 

Narumi squinted into the distance, trying to see Tsubasa. He could only just see the brilliant banner of her red hair, flying in the breeze. “What’s she doing?” 

“If it’s what I think she’s doing? A forbidden technique.” 

Narumi gritted his teeth and formed the seal for the Shadow Clone Jutsu. “We can’t let her go alone! I’ll help her.” 

“Don’t!” Tsubame pushed himself to his feet and grabbed Narumi’s arm. “The technique she’s planning to use can’t be controlled. If you go out there, you’ll be killed. We have to stay here in case she fails. I can count the number of jounin and chuunin in the village on one hand—if we go after her, that’s two less jounin to defend the village.” 

“Uh, I’m still a chuunin, remember?” Narumi said. “I’m still on probation for another six months or something.” 

“Not anymore,” Tsubame snapped. “You’re promoted. Now be quiet, Namikaze!” 

Narumi fell silent. The village was eerily silent; even the ever-present seagulls were gone from the sky. In the distance, the Kiri shinobi were still too far off to make out clearly. Something was strange about the scene, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. 

And then he realized—the ocean was getting further away. 

“Uh, Tsubame? Isn’t it bad when the ocean starts moving away like that?” He glanced over at Tsubame, only to find his gaze fixated on Tsubasa. 

If not for her red hair, it would have been impossible to discern Tsubasa from the horde. “Soon,” Tsubame murmured. 

Something strange was happening to the sky, almost like it was moving. It was only when the first white froth of the cresting wave appeared that Narumi realized it wasn’t the sky, but the sea. 

The wave rushed toward them like an avalanche, swallowing up the Kiri shinobi and Tsubasa. It was taller than any building in Uzushio, and moving fast enough that there was certainly no time to escape the beach, much less evacuate the village. Perhaps they had already been evacuated, but Narumi distinctly remembered passing several people on the way there. 

Was this how Uzushio was destroyed? By a forbidden technique activated by it’s own Kage?

Still, Tsubame didn’t move, and so Narumi held his ground. The wave rushed toward them, and Narumi couldn’t help but close his eyes against the spray of water as he braced for the impact of the wave. 

Water smacked into him, knocking him backwards. Narumi stumbled back and fell, landing in water that only went up to his knees. 

He blinked in surprise. The massive wave was gone, the small waves that periodically lapped against him the only sign that it had ever been there. In the distance, the ocean was almost entirely still once again. The Kiri shinobi were nowhere to be seen, and neither was Tsubasa. 

“The whirlpools,” Tsubame said. “Even an expert at water-walking wouldn’t have a chance of getting out once the whirlpools caught them.” 

He removed the hat from his head and stared at it. After a moment, he replaced it and offered Narumi a hand. “We have to tell the village what happened.” 

They didn’t have to go far. The edge of the beach was crowded with the few jounin and chuunin in the village, as well as several genin. Tsubame stopped in front of them. 

The jounin leading the group dropped to one knee. “Uzukage-sama!” 

The rest of the shinobi followed suit, from the jounin to the genin. Even a few civilians who had risked leaving their houses took to their knees. 

Tsubame inhaled slowly. “My sister—the Nidaime Uzukage is dead,” he said. His voice was quiet, but the village was still unnaturally silent. “She appointed me the Sandaime Uzukage.” 

None of the shinobi seemed to be very surprised, as far as Narumi could tell. The leader of the group nodded firmly. “Shall we discuss matters in your office, Uzukage-sama?” 

“Ah—yes.” Tsubame looked at Narumi for a moment. His hand reached forward slightly, and then retracted. “Namikaze. I’ll see you . . . later. When I have time.” 

“No worries. There’s a lot to deal with,” Narumi said. “I’ll head back to the house and fill Dan and Sakumo in.” 

Tsubame gave him a brief, grateful nod, and then he was gone, swallowed up by the jounin and ANBU bodyguards. A few people walked out onto the watery beach, staring out into the distance. A few young children darted out and splashed through the water, throwing wet sand at each other gleefully. Narumi left them through it, walking through the streets that were only just starting to regain some semblance of life, as people left their houses and stopped him to ask about what had happened. He left them discussing everything in his wake; as he walked through the village, eventually people knew before he even came across them, and more and more people stood talking in the streets. 

“Isn’t eighteen a little young to lead the village? Tsubame-kun is so young . . . Nidaime-sama was twenty-five when Shodaime-sama died.” 

“He’s a medic, isn’t he? I don’t know if a medic is suited to lead the village . . . what if Kiri attacks again?” 

“Didn’t you hear about that wave? Kiri would have to be insane to try that again.” 

Even the Uzumaki weren’t immune from the gossip; if anything, the loudest discussions on the subject were occurring inside the Uzumaki compound, mostly from kids exclaiming about how “totally cool” it was that Tsubame was now Uzukage, and how “super awesome” the giant wave had been. 

As Narumi shut the door to the house, he was beginning to understand Tsubame’s love for that tiny island, far away from the main village. 

Sakumo approached him as soon as he shut the door. “What happened? Quick, before the kids realize you’re here. Dan can’t distract them forever.” 

Narumi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Short version? I’m pretty sure the war with Kiri is over now.” 

Sakumo stared at him. “I think I’m gonna need the long version.” 


	6. Chapter 6

Narumi didn’t see Tsubame again until late the next day, in the middle of washing up dishes after losing at rock-paper-scissors to Dan and Sakumo. 

“Good, you’re all here,” Tsubame said. “Pack up your things. We’re going to Konoha. The Hokage has called a Kage Summit.” 

“The kids?” Dan asked. 

“They’re coming as well,” Tsubame said. “We leave early tomorrow morning. I will meet you on the beach.” 

Sakumo appeared in the bedroom doorway, stifling a yawn. “What’s this about Konoha?” 

Tsubame left without another word, leaving Dan to fill Sakumo in on what little they knew. They spend the rest of the day packing. They didn’t need much, used to surviving on rations and sleeping on any available surface, but the kids weren’t used to such travel. Narumi suspected the longest trip they had ever made was when the ANBU had kidnapped them and taken them to Uzushio, and they’d probably been asleep or unconscious for most of that. 

It seemed like every time Narumi turned around there was something else they needed to bring, but somehow they managed to get everything together in time to meet Tsubame on the beach. 

Tsubame wasn’t alone, of course, accompanied by his usual group of ANBU guards and a jounin with blue-green hair, the one who had spoken to Tsubame the day that the Kiri ninja attacked. 

“Kaisou Mizushima,” he said in greeting. “Jounin Commander.” 

“Narumi Namikaze,” Narumi replied. 

“I know. I’ve read your file.” 

Tsubame cleared his throat. “If everyone is ready, we’ll set off immediately. Dan, Sakumo, Namikaze—each of you take one of the children. I’d like to get there as soon as possible.” 

If it was just them, they could have run straight to Konoha without stopping, but with the children they had to stop and make camp and prepare meals. The fighting had died down, but they still remained on high alert whenever they stopped for the night. There was no telling when some rogue shinobi might show up, wanting revenge or simply wanting to rob them blind. 

Either they were lucky, or ANBU were secretly stalking them and stopping any attackers, because they somehow made it to Konoha without any issues. Tsubame and his Jounin Commander were immediately whisked away to wherever the Summit was being held, somewhere outside of Konoha, taking the ANBU with them. The children were taken somewhere else, hopefully to be reunited with their older siblings, who had been in Konoha's custody. 

That left Narumi standing at the gates of Konoha with Dan and Sakumo, not entirely sure what he was meant to be doing next. 

"Sakumo!" 

A grin spread across Sakumo's face as he turned toward the source of the call. Narumi followed his gaze; it was easy to spot who he was looking at. She stood head and shoulders above the rest of the crowd, and a dog even bigger than Akamaru walked by her side. As if that wasn't enough, she had a massive naginata slung across her back.

A cocky grin on her face, she beckoned Sakumo with one finger. "Get over here, you sexy man." 

Sakumo laughed and ran towards her. He had to lean up to kiss her, balancing himself with an arm around her shoulders. When they separated, her cocky grin had settled into something softer, only to turn mischievous an instant before she put an arm around Sakumo's waist and swung him around. When they came to a stop, they were kissing again. 

They separated at last, laughing and breathless. Sakumo turned and beckoned Narumi over. "Kaede, this is Narumi Namikaze. He's with the Uzumaki. Narumi, this is Kaede Inuzuka, my fiancée, and her partner, Hachimaru."

Narumi should have guessed she was an Inuzuka from the massive dog at her side, the red clan markings on her cheeks, and the sharp canines revealed when she grinned wolfishly at him. Her messy brown hair was pulled back in a loose braid that looked like she had slept in it for a week or two. The most striking thing about her, however, was how tall she was, easily tall enough to prop her chin on Sakumo's head. 

"Holy shit," Narumi said. "How tall are you?" 

Kaede barked out a laugh. "193 centimeters. And I never let Jiraiya forget it!" 

Narumi stared at her. Kaede grinned and flexed. He was pretty sure her biceps were about twice the size of his. "Like what you see?" 

"Uh, is it weird if I say yes?" 

"I'd be insulted if you said no. Also, I wouldn't believe you. Everyone wants a piece of this." She winked at him. "Might as well be honest about it." 

Narumi found himself briefly struck speechless by the realization that this was probably Kakashi's mom. 

Sakumo came to his rescue. "How did you know we arrived? We didn't send advance notice." 

Kaede tapped her nose. "I could smell you comin' a mile away, babe." 

Narumi had to admit they kind of reeked. Traveling from Uzushio to Konoha at top speed didn’t allow much time for showering. 

“Tsunade and I’ve been bored as hell waiting for you,” Kaede continued. “They haven’t been giving out missions or anything because of the Summit. We’ve got the weddings halfway planned already.” 

Dan perked up. “Tsunade is here?” 

“Yeah, she’s at the hospital, I think,” Kaede said, wrinkling her nose. “I’m not helping you look for her. That place stinks.” 

Dan was already walking towards the hospital. “We’ll meet up later!” he called over his shoulder before he was swallowed up by the crowd. 

“We should move away from the gates,” Sakumo said. “We’re blocking traffic.” 

“Whatever you want, babe. Wanna get lunch?” 

“I could eat. My mouth still tastes like ration bars. Narumi, you interested?” 

Narumi ran a hand through his hair. “Maybe another time? I was gonna head by the Academy . . .” 

Sakumo nodded. “Another time. I’m sure we’ll all get together tonight, anyways.” 

The two of them wandered off, arms around each other’s waists, already deep in discussing the options for lunch. 

Narumi went in the other direction, towards the Academy and the administration building. Other shinobi glanced warily at him as he passed, not recognizing him, and he was pretty sure that an ANBU was watching him. He definitely had a member of the Military Police tailing him; the Uchiha wasn’t even trying to be subtle. 

With that in mind, Narumi didn’t try to hide what he was doing. He walked right up to the Academy, looked into classrooms until he found the one Minato was in, and knocked on the door. 

The teacher paused in the middle of his lecture and glared at Narumi. “I’m in the middle of teaching, Shinobi-san.” 

“Sorry, sorry,” he said, as he looked over the crowd of students. Most of them, eager for an interruption, were staring at him. Kushina, recognizing him, waved at him enthusiastically. Minato, on the other hand, had his nose buried in a book, and gave no sign of noticing that the teacher had stopped speaking, much less that they had a guest. “Mind if I borrow Minato Namikaze?” 

Minato still didn’t look up. The boy next to him elbowed him, and only then did Minato jerk to attention, jumping to his feet and dumping his book on the ground. “Sorry, sensei, can you repeat the question?” 

The class snickered. Narumi waved, drawing Minato’s attention away from the teacher. “Hey! Wanna go for lunch?” 

“Lunch isn’t for another hour!” the teacher protested. “And students are not allowed to leave campus for lunch!” 

“Whaddya say, Minato?” Narumi asked. 

Minato looked at his teacher, and then back at Narumi. “I should really stay and study . . .” 

Narumi waved a hand. “I never studied, and I became a ninja! One day of skipping won’t kill you.” 

The teacher spluttered. “Excuse me, I really must protest—” 

Minato nodded, a small smile appearing on his face. “I’d like to join you for lunch.” 

“Great! Grab your stuff. You can show me around town after.” 

Minato stuffed his things into his bag in record speed, nearly leaving behind a few stray papers in his haste. His smile was nearly wide enough to split his face in two by the time he joined Narumi in the doorway. 

“You’ll have to show me the good places for lunch,” Narumi said, slinging an arm around Minato’s shoulder and leading him out of the Academy. “And before you start worrying about cash, it’s my treat. I remember being a broke kid.” 

“I don’t really go out to eat,” Minato admitted. “The matron makes lunch for all the students, and I eat breakfast and dinner at home.” 

“Then we’ll just pick whatever smells the best!” Narumi declared. “The matron?” 

“At the orphanage,” Minato said, his gaze focused on the ground. “I’ve lived there ever since I can remember. The matron says that a woman brought me there, told them my name, and left. She might have been my mother, but they don’t really know . . . and I don’t know anything about my father except that his name was Namikaze, at least according to the woman who brought me there. And now you, I suppose.” 

Narumi ruffled his hair. “We’re the same. I never knew my parents either.” 

Surprisingly, Yakiniku Q was still around. Narumi stopped in front of it and inhaled deeply before grinning down at Minato. “Smells good. You down for barbecue?” 

Minato nodded. “My classmates talk about this place. They say it’s good, but I’ve never been able to go.” 

It was still a little early for lunch, so the hostess seated them immediately, and a waitress quickly came by to take their order. Narumi had a lot of pay from his missions, and he hadn’t had an opportunity to use it, so he was free to go nuts and order as much as he wanted. By the time he’d finished reeling off his order, Minato was staring at him with wide eyes. 

Narumi laughed sheepishly. “I’ve been eating ration bars for the past few days. I’m starving for some real food. Eat as much as you want. So, you just started at the Academy, right?” 

Minato nodded hesitantly. “In January. I’ll be a second year soon.” 

“So you’re . . . seven? Eight?” 

“Eight,” Minato confirmed. “My birthday is in January.” 

“Damn! I missed your birthday. I’ll get you a present next time for sure. What day is it?” 

“Ah, no, you really don’t have to. I don’t need anything,” Minato assured him. 

“Birthdays aren’t about getting stuff you need, they’re about getting stuff you want! Or about other people giving you stuff they think you would want,” Narumi said. “I’ll guess what you want and then you can tell me how close I am. So come on, what day?” 

“The twenty-fifth,” Minato admitted at last. 

“Expect the coolest birthday present ever!” Narumi declared. “I’ve gotta make up for eight birthdays, ya know!” 

The waitress interrupted their conversation with plates of thin-sliced meat. Narumi heaped them onto the grill, turning them so they could cook on each side. They only took a few seconds each, they were so thin. “C’mon, eat up before it gets cold.” 

Between the two of them, they somehow managed to polish off all the food. In between bites of meat, Minato filled him in on everything he’d been learning in the Academy. He didn’t seem to have many friends from what Narumi could tell, instead spending his time practicing and studying. He studied in class, he studied during lunch, and after school he went to the library or training ground to study more, until he went home, ate dinner, and studied in his room. 

“I’m already behind,” Minato explained as he picked at one of the remaining pieces of meat that neither of them had the room to finish off. “Most people in my class are from shinobi clans, like Kushina-san. She can walk on water already. I’ve been trying to figure out some of the chakra control exercises I’ve read about in books, but I haven’t had much luck on my own . . . and when I try to practice at school, the older students just laugh and make me leave.” 

“I can teach you, ya know! I mean, I’m not that great at chakra control stuff, but I know how to do the tree-walking and water-walking exercises,” Narumi said. He scooped up the last of his meat, shoved it into his mouth, and waved down the waitress for their check. 

“You’ll teach me? But why? Don’t you have other things to do?” Minato asked. “You already bought me lunch.” 

“Nothing more important than hanging out with my little brother!” Narumi said as he signed the receipt for the meal with a flourish. “C’mon, let’s go find a free training ground.” 

By the time they finished their meal, most teams had gone for lunch, so they had their pick of training grounds. Narumi picked the one Team Seven had always met at, the one near the bridge with the wooden posts. 

“Okay, so, pick a tree and get walking,” he said. “I’ll make sure you don’t crack your head open.” 

MInato raised his hand. 

“You don’t have to raise your hand. It’s just the two of us. What’s up?” 

“How do you do the tree walking exercise?” 

Narumi scratched the back of his head. “Uh, you just channel the chakra to your feet and walk up. Here, I’ll show you.” 

Narumi walked up the tree and down again as Minato watched. “Like that.” 

“How do you channel chakra to your feet?” 

“You just . . . do it?” Narumi desperately tried to recall what Sakura told him. He was pretty sure she had given him a massive lecture about chakra once or twice. He remembered none of it. “Uh, yeah, you just do it.” 

Minato gave him a skeptical look. “Are you sure you’re a jounin?” 

“Yes, I’m a jounin! I trained for it and everything!” 

“Okay then, how do you channel chakra to your feet? And how do you know how much chakra to use?” 

“You channel it through . . . the chakra pathway system. That’s right. And if you use too much, you’ll break the tree and fall off, but if you use too little you won’t stick to it at all.” Narumi scratched at the back at his head. 

“That’s not much information. Are you sure you can’t tell me anything more detailed?” Minato asked. 

“Uh, to be honest, I kind of just ran at the tree until it worked,” Narumi admitted. “I figured it out eventually!” 

Minato nodded. “Trial and error, then? In that case, I suppose there’s nothing to do but get started.” 

He walked towards the nearest tree. “Oh, hey, do you want a kunai to mark your progress?” Narumi called. Minato gave no sign of hearing, instead staring up at the tree, lost in thought. 

Narumi leaned against one of the wooden posts and waited, wondering if Minato would be more like Sakura, who had gotten it immediately, or Sasuke, who had struggled and struggled until he had mastered it. 

Minato put a foot on the tree and pulled it back. “Not enough.” 

He put a food to the tree again; this time, the bark fractured under his foot. He repeated these experiments a few times, putting a foot to the tree and then removing it, until at last he nodded firmly and walked up the tree. 

“That wasn’t so hard,” he said, from the top of the tree. “What’s the next step?” 

“Water-walking, I guess,” Narumi said. “We’ll need some water to practice on.” 

The Naka River wasn’t far from the training ground, thankfully, and before long the two of them stood by the edge of the river, Minato putting a foot on the water to test various levels of chakra. 

“I see,” he said, after a minute. “The current changes, so you have to constantly adjust the amount of chakra to compensate.” 

With that, Minato stepped out onto the water, wobbled a bit, and then steadied. He took a few steps, then walked around in circles, growing more confident the longer he remained on the surface of the water. Before too long, he was experimenting with jumping up and down. 

“What about hands?” he asked. “Could you channel chakra to your hands to grab onto something?” 

“I guess. I’ve never tried. Wouldn’t you want your hands free so you could form seals?” Narumi said. 

“But what if you were falling and had to stop yourself? I feel like it would be easier to grab onto something with your hand. Or if someone was trying to grab something from your hand, you could hold onto it,” Minato said. He started to go through the basic Academy kata, only occasionally wobbling on the surface of the water. 

“You’ve got pretty good chakra control. It took me forever to get that down,” Narumi said. 

“Well, sensei says I have an average amount of chakra, so I have to use it well. I’m not like Kushina-san. She has so much chakra. She beats me at everything except academics,” Minato sighed. “And she can do the water clone jutsu already, and she knows a lot of taijutsu that they don’t teach us at the Academy. I’ve never managed to beat her when we spar.” 

“She probably can’t do the regular clone,” Narumi said. “I never figured it out. They always came out funny-looking. And don’t worry so much about school! I was pretty bad at school, and I turned out fine! You’re gonna be an awesome ninja.” 

Minato gave him a small, sheepish smile. “Thank you, Narumi-san.” 

Narumi opened his mouth to tell him that just Narumi was fine, when a deep voice said, “Narumi-san.” 

Narumi looked around, but saw nothing. 

“Down here, Narumi-san.” 

Narumi looked down and saw a large slug sitting at his feet. “Oh, hey. Did Tsunade send you?” 

“Yes. Your presence is required. I will escort you to Tsunade-sama,” the slug said. 

“Sure. Sorry, Minato, looks like I’ll have to cut this short,” he said. “I’ll see you again, yeah?” 

Minato stepped off the water and bowed. “Thank you for your time, Narumi-san. But . . . before you go, can I ask you something?” 

“Sure, go ahead.” 

Minato hesitated for a moment. “Why did you want to spend time with me today? I’m sure you have more important things to do, as a jounin, and I’m just a first-year student.” 

Narumi ruffled his hair. “You’re my brother, and that makes us family! I wanted to spend time with you and get to know you. That’s all there is to it. I don’t know how much free time I’m going to have, but I want to spend as much of it as I can with you. How about this? If I’m free, I’ll meet you at the Academy.” 

Minato fixed his gaze on Narumi’s shoes, but Narumi could see him smiling. “I’d like that.” 

“Great. I’ll see you soon, Minato!” With one last ruffle of Minato’s hair, Narumi turned to follow the surprisingly fast slug, nearly missing the quiet response from behind him. 

“See you soon . . . Nii-san.” 

Grinning like an idiot, Narumi followed the slug back to the main streets of Konoha. He vaguely recognized the areas they were in, although it had been rebuilt and added to many times when he had lived there. The restaurant district was still in the same location, albeit with different restaurants than he was used to. The bar that the slug led him to was unfamiliar to him, but the faces that greeted him inside were very familiar. 

“Narumi!” Sakumo waved him over with the hand not wrapped around Kaede. “Grab a seat. You’re the last one here, apart from Tsubame.” 

Sakumo and Kaede sat on one side of the table, with Dan, Tsunade, and Orochimaru on the other side. Narumi chose to sit next to Sakumo, even though that put him in the uncomfortable position of sitting directly across from Orochimaru. The rest of them already had drinks, and were quick to push another drink at him. Another drink still waited, most likely for Tsubame. 

Narumi looked around the table again. “Jiraiya isn’t coming?” 

The glass in Tsunade’s hand cracked. “Jiraiya,” she said, through gritted teeth. “Is too busy playing _genin-sensei_ in fucking _Ame_!” 

“I told you we should have just killed them,” Orochimaru said. 

Tsunade sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “For the last time, Orochimaru, we’re not killing kids if we can help it. Now drink your alcohol.” 

“We kill people all the time. I don’t see what difference the age of the individual being killed makes,” Orochimaru muttered before downing his drink. 

“So Jiraiya’s still in Ame? I’m surprised the Hokage let him stay,” Narumi said. 

“Officially, he’s there to ‘keep an eye on the situation.’ Ame is still unstable as hell. Fights break out there every day. The villages might have stopped all major operations for this treaty, but that still leaves rogue shinobi, minor border skirmishes, shinobi from the smaller villages, and the like. Hanzo hasn’t been too active over there since we fought, but it’s still a hot zone.” The glass in her grip shattered. “Bastard.” 

Dan cleaned up the glass as Sakumo dabbed at the spilled alcohol. “With any luck, everyone will be officially recalled soon. I’m sure he won’t miss the weddings.” 

“He’d better not. I’ll kill him,” she said. 

From what Narumi could remember, Jiraiya wouldn’t return to the village until Minato became a genin. That wouldn’t happen for a couple years yet, probably. “I’m sure he’ll return soon,” Narumi said. 

“Speaking of missing people, where is Tsubame?” Sakumo asked. 

Tsunade smacked the table. “He’d better show up, that brat! I sent him an escort and everything.” 

“He might be busy with meetings,” Dan pointed out. 

“Nah, they stopped them early. The Tsuchikage’s guard was in my hospital with a broken arm,” Tsunade said. “Any longer and there might not be a Summit anymore.” 

“I’m sure he’ll be here soon,” Dan assured her. 

They ordered another round of drinks and some snacks, still with no sign of Tsubame. At last, a bird with a blue back, red face, and white belly flew in through the door and landed at their table. 

“Tsubame-sama sends his apologies, but he won’t be able to make it to the party,” it chirped, before fluttering its wings as if to fly away. 

“Orochimaru, catch it!”

At Tsunade’s words, Orochimaru’s hand shot out and seized the bird before it could fly away. Tsunade stood and slammed her hand on the table. “If Tsubame won’t come to the party, we’ll take the party to him! Grab your drinks and snacks, everyone. This meal is on Jiraiya’s tab!” 

“No tabs during wartime!” the bartender called. 

Tsunade put her hands on her hips and stared down the bartender. “Don’t you know who I am? I’m Tsunade Senju, one of the Sannin who survived Hanzo the Salamander!” 

“You’ve had too much to drink, is what,” the bartender retorted. “Now pay your bill and get out!” 

The six of them abruptly found themselves out on the street, holding drinks and plates of snacks. “Wimps,” Tsunade said. “We didn’t even drink that much.” 

“And another bar kicks us out,” Sakumo said cheerfully. 

Dan looked back. “Should we return their plates and cups? They didn’t give us any takeout containers.” 

“Ours now!” Tsunade cackled. “Okay, Orochimaru, release that bird. He’s our ticket to Tsubame!” 

Orochimaru released the bird, which fluttered away and was soon no more than a dot in the sky. “After him!” Tsunade declared. 

Balancing drinks and plates of snacks, they took to the rooftops. Orochimaru was the fastest out of them all, leaving the rest of them trailing behind him, spilling alcohol all over themselves and dropping snacks on roofs. 

“You there! Drinking alcohol in the street is prohibited!” 

Kaede laughed. “Shit, it’s the Uchiha! Run for it!” 

Narumi glanced behind them to see two members of the military police attempting to keep up. “I know your names!” one of them yelled. “You’re in for it once I report you!” 

“Yeah, right!” Kaede called back. “Name us then!” 

“Senju, Hatake, Inuzuka, and Uzumaki! Your clan symbols are right there on your backs! And I know you too, Orochimaru!” 

“Looks like Dan’s the only safe one!” Sakumo laughed. 

Narumi looked over at Tsunade, who was in the middle of taking a drink. “Uh, should we be concerned about this?” 

“Pfft! As if. They’re the military police, not ANBU. What’re they gonna do, scold us and slap us with a fine? And that’s if they catch us first!” Tsunade called, loud enough that the officers still chasing them could easily here. 

“That’s it, just wait until I get my hands on you—” 

“Stop in the name of the law, you menaces!” 

Narumi took a gulp from his drink and nearly choked. It was much harder to run and drink than Tsunade made it look. He risked another glance behind them. The two officers were still chasing them, but they weren’t gaining any ground. 

Two more officers alighted on the rooftops beside the original officers. “What seems to be the problem?” 

“Captain! We were attempting to arrest these shinobi for drunk and disorderly conduct when they started to resist arrest!” 

“Shit! Reinforcements. Run for it!” Tsunade put on a burst of speed, and the rest of them followed, breathlessly chasing the bird. In the distance, Narumi spotted the building he had stayed at the last time he had been there, the one where Tsubame kept an apartment. 

Orochimaru, first to the door, punched in a code and vanished inside. Tsunade held the door open and gestured towards them. “In, in, in! Quick, the stairs!” 

They jumped up the stairs rather than climbing up them normally, and soon were at the top floor. Tsunade jostled the handle and swore. “Locked with a seal! Orochimaru, can you get it?” 

“An Uzumaki seal of that caliber? In a week,” Orochimaru said. 

“JIraiya could do it,” Sakumo said. 

Tsunade slammed a fist against the door. “Dammit, Jiraiya! If I get arrested, I’m making him pay bail!” 

“Hang on, I think I can get it, Tsubame said he added me to the seal.” Narumi pushed his way to the front and bit down on his thumb until it bled. He swiped his thumb across the seal, and they all tumbled forwards as the door slid open. 

“Quick, shut the door, shut the door!” 

Tsubame, sitting at the kitchen table with a mountain of papers in front of him, blinked at them rapidly. “What in the world are you doing?” 

“Tsubame, cheers!” Tsunade exclaimed, holding her mostly empty cup aloft. “Hide us from the cops!” 

“Again? What did you do this time?” 

They all tried to talk over each other to explain what had happened, only to fall silent at a knock on the door. Tsubame stood. “I’ll deal with it. Stay out of sight.” 

The six of them shuffled over to the nearest door, and shortly found themselves shut in Tsubame’s bedroom, sipping their drinks and nibbling on edamame and kara-age. 

“I feel like someone should be making a joke about being in Tsubame’s bedroom,” Sakumo remarked. 

“I’ve got nothing,” Kaede said. “We need Jiraiya’s unique talents for this.” 

“What, being a creep?” Tsunade laughed. 

Sakumo had his ear pressed to the door. “Shh, shh, we have to listen in case Tsubame needs backup.” 

“Oh, come on, they’re hardly going to try to arrest the Uzukage,” Tsunade said. “How drunk are you?” 

“Not drunk enough, probably,” he said. 

Tsunade wiggled her empty cup. “True, that. There is a distinct lack of alcohol here. Who wants to go to the corner store?” 

“Not it!” 

“Rock-paper-scissors!” Kaede proposed. “Losers have to go to the corner store!” 

“Everyone loses at rock-paper-scissors,” Orochimaru said. “Unless you plan on restricting us to two options.” 

“Okay, fine, we’ll pick underwear out of Tsubame’s drawers and whoever picks the brightest pair has to go,” Kaede said. They stared at her, aghast, and she shrugged. “What? Someone has to represent Jiraiya here.” 

“Oh, so it was a joke,” Tsunade said, as she subtly slipped a kunai back into her pouch. 

Sakumo rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “It wasn’t a bad idea—don’t look at me like that, I’m not saying we should actually steal his underwear! We should draw lots or something!”

The door opened, and any response they might have made was silenced by Tsubame’s glare. “You had better not be talking about stealing my underwear.” 

Kaede, grinning, wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Don’t worry, Tsubame-chan, I’ll defend your honor.” 

“You were the one who suggested stealing his underwear in the first place,” Tsunade reminded them. 

Kaede waved a hand. “Details.” 

“It’s a pretty important detail, you can’t exactly defend him from yourself—” 

“I could if I had a shadow clone that turned evil—”

“You can’t even make a shadow clone.” 

“Yeah, but if I could!” 

“Why are you in my house?” Tsubame said. 

Narumi raised his hand. “Well, I’m staying here.” 

Tsubame shot him an exasperated look. 

Sakumo raised a hand. “It’s Tsunade’s fault.” 

Tsubame shot Tsunade an exasperated look. 

Tsunade shrugged. “What? Hiruzen-sensei is hardly going to hide us from the cops.” 

“He did that one time,” Orochimaru said. 

“Yeah, when we were kids,” Tsunade said. “When we turned sixteen he said he was going to stop hiding us from the cops, remember?” 

“I don’t.” 

Tsunade thought for a moment. “Oh, yeah, it was just Jiraiya and me that got that lecture.” 

Orochimaru smiled slyly. “That’s because I never need to hide.” 

Narumi was overcome by a sudden fit of coughing as he recalled all the time Orochimaru had spent hiding in the future. 

“How drunk are you?” Tsubame asked. 

“Not at all!” Tsunade declared. “Come on, Orochimaru, you and I are going to the corner store. We’ve got better taste than these plebs. The rest of you, sit on Tsubame and make sure he doesn’t get away.” 

“This is my house!” Tsubame called after her. The front door slammed in response. He sighed. “She’s going to bring back vodka, isn’t she? You do realize I came here to work.” 

“We can’t have a party with one of our friends missing,” Sakumo said. 

“And it isn’t good for your health to work constantly,” Dan said. “You need to take breaks, Tsubame.” 

Kaede dropped her arm from around his shoulders, only to pull him into a bone-crushing hug. A muffled yelp escaped him as his face plunged into her chest. Narumi felt weirdly jealous of both parties. “Don’t worry, Tsubame-chan, we’ll save you from the big, bad paperwork.” 

Kaede patted his head, and then grinned wickedly and gave him a noogie that had him desperately fighting her off. “Kaede, my hair—do you know how long it takes to fix my hair—” 

“Oh, calm down, princess, you’re still pretty.” Kaede released him and slapped his back, sending him stumbling forward. She gave Narumi a wicked grin. “Narumi agrees, right?” 

“Wha—why me?” 

“Please, you two aren’t fooling anyone. You reek of each other. The only two worse are Dan and Tsunade,” Kaede said. “So, did ya do it yet?” 

Tsubame spluttered. “Kaede! That’s completely inappropriate!” 

She shrugged. “What? I just want to know how much PDA I should prepare for.” 

“As if you aren’t the worst offender in that department,” Tsubame said. 

Kaede, grinning, folded her arms behind her head. “Guilty as charged.” 

Tsubame sighed and massaged his temples. “You could at least get out of my bedroom.” 

“Sure, sure.” Kaede dropped her arms around Sakumo and Narumi’s shoulders and dragged them forwards. “Come on, boys. Tsubame needs time to pretty himself up for his guests.” 

“We can’t all roll around in the dirt and call it makeup,” Tsubame retorted, before slamming the door on their backs. 

“You wish you had a face like mine!” Kaede yelled through the door. Narumi hadn’t personally met that many Inuzuka, but from the ones he had met, he was beginning to think that they had no idea how to speak in anything quieter than a shout. 

Tsubame didn’t respond, so they returned to the main room, which contained a small kitchen, the kitchen table, and a small living room off to the side. The kitchen table was covered with papers, which they all left alone in favor of squeezing onto the couch and fiddling with the radio. 

After the sixth station droning on about the war and the peace talks, they finally found a station that was playing some weird music that Narumi would have considered oldies but that were modern in this day and age. 

“Better than nothing,” was Kaede’s assessment. “Otherwise we’d have to break out the musical instruments, and trust me, no one wants to hear Tsubame attempt to play. Or me. Or Orochimaru. Or Tsunade. Or Sakumo.”

“Or me,” Narumi added. 

“That leaves us with Dan, and he only listens to weird instrumental music from before Konoha even existed,” Kaede said. 

“They’re classics,” Dan said. “The musical complexity—” 

The door opened and Tsubame walked out, wearing a more comfortable yukata with his hair pulled back in a ponytail. “Are we discussing music? Dan has the best taste—what are you doing?” 

They blinked at him. “What?” Narumi said. 

“You do realize I have chairs,” Tsubame said. 

They looked at each other, squished on the couch. In the end there hadn’t been enough room, so Sakumo was sitting on Kaede, but they made it work. 

“Do you want to make Orochimaru sit on this couch?” Sakumo asked. “Because you’re welcome to try. I promise we’ll make your funeral a nice one.” 

“There are two chairs,” Tsubame said. 

“Go on, fight Tsunade for the other one,” Kaede said. “That’ll liven things up.” 

“I’m not sitting with you. I have a lot of work to do.” With that, Tsubame took his spot in one of the chairs at the kitchen table and glared down at the papers spread in front of him. 

“Boo! Spoilsport,” Kaede called. 

“I told you, I don’t have time to drink with you. I have a lot of work to do for the Summit,” Tsubame said. 

The door slammed open. “Guess who’s back?” Tsunade called, holding two bottles of vodka aloft. Orochimaru, behind her, held two six-packs in each hand. 

Tsunade dumped their purchases—including a few bags that Narumi suspected contained more snacks—and set about pouring shots for everybody. “Anyone who skips out on shots can go turn themselves in to Officer Uchiha out there,” she said. 

“They’re still there? For real?” Kaede laughed. “Don’t they have real criminals to arrest?” 

“They’re the Military Police,” Tsunade said. “They basically exist so the Uchiha can feel self-important.” 

“Now, now, that’s not the only reason they exist,” Dan said, although he was smiling in amusement. 

“Oh, yeah, how could I forget! They also exist to get in the way of the ANBU.” Tsunade handed him a shot and leaned down to kiss him. “Thanks for the reminder, honey.” 

Narumi tossed back the shot as she handed it to him, wincing as the alcohol burned all the way down his throat. “Ugh. That’s disgusting.” 

“It’ll put some hair on your chest!” Tsunade declared. 

“Tsunade was too cheap to buy decent alcohol,” said Orochimaru, who Narumi noticed was drinking something completely different. 

Tsunade snorted. “I’m not wasting the good stuff on people who have no taste. They can have the shitty beer and glorified rubbing alcohol.” 

“I think I’d rather have the rubbing alcohol,” Narumi said as Tsunade poured him another shot. 

“Get drunk enough and you’ll stop tasting it. Bottoms up, boys and girls!” 

They all drank, and drank again whenever Tsunade refilled their glasses, switching to the bland, watery beer when Tsunade declared them all sufficiently drunk. Narumi had made his way through three beers and several conversations that he only dimly remembered by the time they did another round of shots, which they followed up with snacks and convenience store meals. 

Narumi downed another shot—it was true, you did stop caring about the taste after you were drunk enough—and laughed as Kaede told some doubtlessly exaggerated story from the Iwa front. 

At some point, Narumi ended up sitting on the floor; Dan was throwing up in the bathroom, and in his absence Kaede and Sakumo had taken over the couch and were whispering to each other and laughing quietly. Orochimaru and Tsunade were both hunched over the coffee table, scribbling away on pieces of paper and plotting Jiraiya’s death. Tsubame still sat at the table, pouring over his papers. 

Narumi got to his feet with minimal wobbling and made his way to Tsubame with a tray of snacks. “How’s it going?” 

“Terribly. It will be a miracle if the Tsuchikage doesn’t kill everyone in the next meeting.” Tsubame bit into a piece of chicken and glared at the paper. “I would like to find a solution that pleases everybody, but the Tsuchikage and Raikage are determined to not be pleased on one end of the spectrum, with Danzo on the other!” 

Narumi tried his best to look as if he didn’t recognize the name. “Danzo?” 

“Shimura Danzo. The Hokage’s advisor,” Tsubame said. “He has the best interests of Konoha at heart, but that doesn’t make him any less unpleasant to work with. Especially when he seems determined to dismiss all of my suggestions.” 

Narumi sat down backwards in the chair next to him, folding his arms across the back of the chair and resting his chin on them. “Well, you can talk to me about it if you want. I bet I can do a good Danzo impression. Grr, Konoha is the best, all other villages should die!” 

“Surprisingly accurate, considering you’ve never met him.” 

“You never know! Maybe I’ve met him in like a past life or something.” 

Tsubame laughed. “You’re drunk. You don’t have to keep me company, you know. Go back to the party.” 

Narumi wrinkled his nose. “Honestly, I feel like if I drink another drop I’m going to be sick, and there’s only one bathroom.” 

“Dan?” Tsubame guessed. “He never could handle hard liquor.” 

“Yeah. And anyways, I like spending time with you.” 

Tsubame didn’t look away from his papers, but he was smiling. “And I like spending time with you. I warn you now, it’s not going to be interesting.” 

“That’s okay,” Narumi said. “Just looking at you is interesting enough for me.” 

“You’re a sap.” Tsubame smiled softly at the papers in front of him. 

“Only for you,” Narumi said. 

In the bathroom, Dan kept throwing up. Tsunade walked by on her way to check on him; Orochimaru had vanished somewhere, probably to his lab. On the couch, Kaede and Sakumo had fallen asleep, only managing to fit with Sakumo on top of Kaede. Narumi closed his eyes and listened to the scratch of Tsubame’s pen on the papers. 

This wasn’t what he’d expected from the past. But he liked it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes about Names
> 
> Kaede (楓): maple


	7. Chapter 7

Narumi woke up in his bedroom with no memory of how he got there. A glance at the clock revealed it was almost three in the afternoon—about time for the Academy to let out. With a groan, Narumi heaved himself out of bed and trudged to the kitchen. He sipped at a cup of water, hoping that would somehow silence his pounding head and settle his queasy stomach, until he noticed a seal on the table and a note from Tsubame telling him take it for his hangover and that Narumi was once again free for the day. 

Narumi applied the seal and groaned in relief as the pain faded away. “Tsubame, you’re a god.” 

Now that he wasn’t in danger of throwing up whenever he moved too quickly, Narumi got dressed and ran from the apartment to the Academy, arriving just in time for the students to get out of class. It was still weird to him, how many Uchiha there were—he swore that about a third of the kids streaming from the building had the Uchiha crest somewhere on their clothes. On the other hand, there weren’t nearly as many kids from civilian clans as he remembered from his day. In his class, there had only been ten or so kids from shinobi clans, with the remaining twenty or so from civilian families or the orphanage. Here, he was hard pressed to spot more than one civilian kid for every five from a shinobi family. 

He wasn’t able to spot Minato until the crowds cleared and he could see to the old tree with the swing, on which Minato sat, reading a scroll. 

“Hey, Minato!” 

Minato jumped, nearly falling off the swing, and looked around. His eyes widened when they landed on Narumi. “You came!” 

“I’ve got the day free again. To be honest, I’m not really sure why they even brought me.” Narumi shrugged. “But I like Konoha, so I’m not complaining. So, want to train? We can probably find an open training ground somewhere.” 

Minato nodded enthusiastically. “I want to work on my taijutsu. It’s hard to practice with no one to tell me what I’m doing wrong.” 

Narumi rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Uh, I’m more of a run in and start hitting people kind of guy. I don’t really know the basic Academy style all that well.” 

“That’s okay! Kushina-san doesn’t do the basic style either,” Minato said. 

Together, they walked out of the Academy and made their way to the training grounds. “Kushina-san, huh?” 

“She’s really good at taijutsu. She can beat anyone!” He sighed. “I wanted to get her something for her birthday, but I didn’t know what she would want, and now it’s too late.” 

“A present Kushina would want, huh? Maybe a kunai or something? Or, uh, a scarf? Girls like scarves, right?” Narumi said. 

“But her birthday is in the summer, so a scarf doesn’t make sense,” Minato said. 

“A . . . hat?” 

Minato looked at him doubtfully. Narumi searched for an escape from the conversation before Minato lost all faith in him. “Oh! Look, a training ground. Let’s get practicing! Come on, show me what you’ve got!” 

Minato wasn’t bad at taijutsu. He was a little textbook, a little predictable, but he’d grow out of that as he got used to fighting and stopped worrying about whether or not his form was correct. He had what mattered, in Narumi’s mind—he punched hard and didn’t give up.

In the end, Narumi was the one who had to call an end to the training. He was pretty sure training too hard was counterproductive when you were just starting out—Sakura had talked about that once. Once Minato started taking more than a few minutes to pick himself up off the ground, Narumi decided it was time to stop. They’d been training for a long time, anyways; the sun had already started to set. 

They went out to dinner at a restaurant Narumi had never been to but that Minato wanted to try. At first Minato was eager to talk about the books he read and what he was learning in class, but as soon as Narumi mentioned seals, every sentence out of his mouth was a question about seals. By the end of the night, Narumi had resorted to giving him a rundown of the basic parts of seals by scrawling them on a spare napkin. 

They only left when they realized it was past midnight, the restaurant was closing, and Minato had missed his curfew; Minato refused an escort home, so Narumi headed his own way and returned to the apartment. 

Tsubame was there, for once not pouring over his papers. He was sitting on the window seat instead, staring out over the village. He had a bottle of sake at his side, and was dressed in the casual yukata that Narumi was coming to recognize as his preferred outfit for lounging about the house. 

“Got room for one more?” 

“I don’t think we’ll both fit—here, I’ll move to the couch.” 

“Nah, we can make it work. Here, budge up.” Narumi nudged Tsubame’s legs out of the way and took a seat at the opposite and of the windowsill. “Nice view.” 

Tsubame hummed in agreement. “Konoha is a lovely village. Not as beautiful as Uzushio, but few places are, to me.” 

“Uzushio is one-of-a-kind,” Narumi agreed. “Kind of like you.” 

“Hah. People who knew Tsubasa and I as children would disagree.” 

“Really? I dunno, you seemed pretty different to me,” Narumi said. “Sure, you two look identical, and I guess you’re both kind of serious, and you both really care about your family, and . . . uh, where was I going with this?” 

He’d been aiming for a laugh, but Tsubame didn’t so much as smile. “We were different,” Tsubame said, staring into his sake. “Tsubasa never cared about what other people thought of her.” 

He took a gulp of the sake and then held it out to Narumi. Narumi waved a hand. “Thanks, but I’m good.” 

“Ah, right, your little over-indulgence last night.” Tsubame took another sip. “I was going to look over the proposed treaty again, but since everyone seems determined to dismiss me as a child, why bother?” 

“Rough day?” 

“It’s always a rough day when I have to deal with stubborn old men,” Tsubame said bitterly. 

Narumi smacked his fist against the palm of his hand. “Want me to go in there and soften them up for you?” 

“If only that would help, I would gladly join you,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi ran a hand through his hair. “I wish there was something I could do to help. I’m not even sure why you brought me to Konoha with you, ya know.” 

Tsubame tucked his legs up further and rested his chin on his knees. “I have to admit, it was a . . . selfish decision. I wanted you at my side.” 

A grin spread across Narumi’s face. “Oh, I get it. This is a romantic getaway.” 

Tsubame’s head jerked up. His cheeks were painted the same red as his hair. “It’s not like that!” 

Narumi got to his knees and crawled closer to Tsubame. Tsubame, his face still aflame, tried to shift back, only to find himself trapped by the wall. Narumi set his hands on Tsubame’s knees. “And you didn’t even tell me,” he lamented. “All this time for romance, wasted!” 

“We’ve been here for two days!” 

“There’s a lot you can do in two days,” Narumi said with a wink. He stretched Tsubame’s legs out so that framed his waist, putting Narumi between Tsubame’s knees. The yukata was bunched up at Tsubame’s knees, and had fallen open slightly to display Tsubame’s legs. He ran his fingers along Tsubame’s legs, tracing his soft skin, moving higher and higher with each pass of his fingers. 

Narumi had planned to stop as soon as he reached an obstruction, but his fingers encountered nothing, even when his fingers had vanished up the yukata. Narumi ran his fingers along the outside of Tsubame’s thighs, and stopped as he reached Tsubame’s hips. 

His grin had faded as he focused on Tsubame’s legs, but now it returned, wider than ever. “You’re not wearing any underwear!” 

Tsubame’s blush had reached his ears, and was starting to creep to his chest. It was adorable. “S-so? It’s not like I was going out!” 

Narumi surged forward, pressing kisses all over the exposed skin of Tsubame’s neck and chest. “Do you have any idea how sexy you are?” 

“A-ah! Narumi, wait!” 

Narumi pulled back and moved to kiss Tsubame’s lips instead. “Too much?” 

“We’re in the middle of a shinobi village! Anyone could look through the window and see us,” Tsubame protested. 

“Is that all? Then we’ll move to the bedroom.” Narumi stood, and before Tsubame could get up as well, got his arms under Tsubame’s knees and around his back and lifted him up. He was heavier than Narumi had expected, but not too heavy for Narumi to carry to the bedroom.

“Narumi!” Tsubame yelped. “Some warning would be nice!” 

“But you’re cute when you’re surprised,” Narumi laughed as he walked towards the bedroom. He dropped Tsubame on the bed as suddenly as he picked him up, admiring how how the yukata fell open as Tsubame settled on the bed. 

Narumi grinned down at him. “So, Uzukage-sama? I’m at your command.” 

Tsubame glared up at him, the effect lessened by his blush. “Get over here and kiss me.” 

Narumi crawled across the bed and knelt between Tsubame’s spread legs. He reached out and cupped Tsubame’s face with his hands, brushing away a stray strand of red hair with one thumb. Tsubame’s lips parted slightly, and Narumi could no longer resist. Still smiling softly, he leaned down, towards Tsubame. 

“As you wish.” 

***

They fell into a routine over the next few days. Narumi woke up, sometimes in Tsubame’s bed, sometimes in his own, to an empty apartment and the breakfast Tsubame had left for him. He wandered around Konoha, occasionally meeting up with Sakumo or Dan or Tsunade or Kaede or even Orochimaru, until it was time for the Academy to let out. Minato was almost always waiting for him on the swings, and the two of them would train or study fuinjutsu together or grab something to eat until Minato had to return to the orphanage--personally, Narumi wouldn’t have minded spending more time together, but Minato was always careful about curfew after the first time he missed it. 

Once Minato left, usually after dinner, Narumi returned home to spend time with Tsubame. Sometimes they went out with the rest of their friends, sometimes they stayed in so Tsubame could go over his papers for the next meeting of the Summit. 

Days passed, with no sign of the Summit ending or the treaty being signed, until Narumi walked into the apartment, planning to put away the remains of his lunch before heading to the Academy, only to find the papers gone from the table. 

Tsubame was in his bedroom, shoving his clothes into his pack. 

“What happened?” Narumi asked. 

“The Tsuchikage and the Raikage walked out of the Summit,” Tsubame snapped. “Kiri and Suna signed the treaty. We’re going back to Uzushio.” 

Narumi leaned against the doorway. “Do we have time to swing by the Academy? I should say goodbye to Minato.” 

Tsubame sighed. Slowly, his shoulders relaxed, releasing all the tension he had been holding. “Yes. Yes, we should have time for that. There is someone I should give my greetings to, as well. Pack your things, and then we will leave.” 

Narumi left him to his packing and went to his room to do the same. He hadn’t brought much beyond a few changes of clothes and his usual mission gear. “You mean Sakumo and Tsunade and all them?” 

“No, I’ll send them a message. They’ll understand,” Tsubame called back. “This is a meeting that has to be done in person.” 

Once Narumi had packed up his belongings and sealed them away to make them easier to transport, he met with Tsubame in the living room. Rather than his usual mission gear or casual wear, Tsubame was dressed up in a kimono and hakama. Narumi, in his jounin uniform, felt underdressed in comparison. 

“Uh, should I . . . change . . .” 

As Tsubame tucked his hair behind his ear, Narumi’s eyes were drawn to a flash of blue. Delicate blue glass, the same color as Tsubame’s eyes, dangled from his ears. 

Tsubame smiled, clearly pleased. “It’s not necessary.” 

“Uh, good. ‘Cause I don’t own anything more formal than a jounin vest,” Narumi admitted. 

Tsubame shook his head as he turned to leave. “We’ll have to remedy that. You should own at least one outfit suitable for formal occasions.” 

“What, you planning on showing me off?” Narumi teased, throwing an arm around Tsubame’s waist. 

Tsubame avoided his gaze. “This way.” 

Tsubame led them to a clan compound, one of the ones with walls and a big, imposing gate. The nameplate, however, surprised Narumi. “Senju? I thought you said we weren’t going to visit Tsunade.” 

“We aren’t,” Tsubame said. He exchanged a few words with the man at the gate, too quietly for Narumi to overhear, and the man escorted them deeper into the compound. Narumi took the opportunity to look around--there were a lot of trees, which he should have expected, and an expansive garden. They passed by several houses, some of them empty and some of them occupied, until they stopped at a house that wasn’t much different from the rest, as far as Narumi could tell. 

The man led them to a room, but left them outside the door while he went in. After a moment, he returned, this time to gesture them in. 

The room was small, occupied only by a low table, a few cushions to sit on, and an old woman with faded, maroon hair and black eyes. 

She smiled as they entered. “Tsubame, come, sit down.” 

Tsubame bowed deeply to her. “Mito-sama, may I introduce Narumi Namikaze. Narumi, this is Mito Senju.” 

The old woman chuckled. “There’s no need to be so formal, Tsubame. It is lovely to meet you, Narumi-kun. Thank you for taking time out of your day to visit this old woman.” 

“Nice to meet you, too,” Narumi said. 

“I would have visited sooner, but I was busy with the Summit until now,” Tsubame said. 

“Ah, yes, I heard all about it from Hiruzen and Shimura. Those boys never could agree on anything,” she sighed and shook her head. “But enough of that, Tsubame. I haven’t seen you since what happened in Uzushio. I still remember the day your sister turned eighteen. . .it was striking, how much she looked like your mother in her kimono. I see you’re wearing the earrings I gave her.” Mito said. 

Tsubame reached up to touch the earrings. “Tsubasa never did like jewelry, but people always gave it to her.” 

Mito reached across the table, clasping Tsubame’s hands between hers. “I am sorry, Tsubame.” 

Tsubame’s eyes were fixed on his lap, so Narumi couldn’t see his expression. “It’s alright. It was necessary for the sake of the village. I’m sure you understand, Mito-sama.” 

“I do. But Tsubame, it’s alright to mourn.” She turned her smile on Narumi. “And, it’s alright to depend on the people you love.” 

Narumi expected Tsubame to splutter and protest, like he did when Narumi teased him, but he just nodded once and pulled his hands away. “I apologize for cutting our visit short, but we really should be leaving. We have to stop at the Academy before we leave.” 

“Oh? Saying goodbye to Kushina-chan?” 

“No--well, I should do that as well. But Narumi has to say goodbye to his younger brother. Minato Namikaze. Kushina may have mentioned him, they’re in the same class,” Tsubame said. 

“Your brother? Well then, I’ll have to check in on him as well. He’s practically an Uzumaki,” Mito said. 

Narumi beamed at her. He wasn’t really sure who she was, other than a member of the Senju clan, but she was pretty cool for an old lady. “Thanks!” 

“Thank you for meeting with us,” Tsubame said, with another bow. “I’ll see you again when I’m next in Konoha.” 

“Be safe, Tsubame. And you, Narumi-kun.” 

Narumi waved goodbye as the same man who had led them there escorted them from the compound. Tsubame didn’t say a word as they left the Senju compound, and continued his silence as they walked towards the compound. 

“Soooo,” Narumi said. “Who was that lady?” 

Tsubame finally looked at him, an exasperated expression on his face. “That lady, as you put it, was Mito Senju.” 

“Yeah, I got that, but who is she? Just someone from the Senju clan?” 

“She’s from the Uzumaki clan, actually,” Tsubame said. “Mito-sama is my father’s sister, but she married Hashirama Senju and took his name. Tsunade is her granddaughter.” 

Narumi’s head whipped back to the direction they had come from, even though he could no longer see the compound. “That was Tsunade’s  _ grandma _ ?” 

“Trust you to focus on that part,” Tsubame sighed, but Narumi noticed the smile was back on his face. 

“Wait a minute, if she’s Tsunade’s grandma, and your father’s sister . . .” his nose wrinkled. “How old is she? Wait, no, hold up. You’re related to Tsunade? Argh, I don’t know what to focus on!” 

This time, a soft huff of something that could almost be considered laughter escaped Tsubame’s lips. “Mito-sama is my father’s older sister, and my father was rather old when he had Tsubasa and I. And yes, Tsunade and I are related. Her father was my cousin, and Tsunade and I are first cousins once removed.” 

“Is that why all your names are so similar?” 

Tsubame laughed out loud at that. Satisfied, Narumi grinned and waited for him to recover himself. “They are, aren’t they? I hadn’t thought of that,” Tsubame said. 

“Well, that’s one mystery solved,” Narumi joked. 

Tsubame didn’t speak again, but the atmosphere was much more comfortable now. Narumi suspected that the mention of his sister bothered Tsubame more than he would admit. He filled the silence between them with idle chatter, remarking on the places they passed that he had visited with Minato or with the rest of their group of friends, until they reached the Academy. Their visit to Mito had pushed back their arrival enough that most of the students had left for the day, but Minato was still on the swing under the tree. 

“I’ll look for Kushina,” Tsubame said. “She might have gone home already. Meet me at the school gate when you’re ready to leave.” 

Narumi continued towards Minato while Tsubame walked off on his own. “Minato! Sorry I’m late.” 

Minato looked up with a smile and rolled up his scroll. “It’s okay, Nii-san. I was just studying. Do you have time to train today?” 

“About that.” Narumi scratched at the back of his head. “We’re going back to Uzushio today. I . . . don’t know when I’ll be in Konoha again.” 

“Oh.” Minato bit his lip and looked at the ground. “Will I get to see you again?” 

Narumi crouched down and put his hands on Minato’s shoulders. “Absolutely! I’ll come to Konoha and see you every chance I get, believe it. And I’ll be there when you graduate if I have to become a missing nin to do it!” 

Minato giggled and scrubbed at his eyes with his sleeve. “You shouldn’t do that, Nii-san. You’ll get in trouble.” 

“Nah, I’ve got an in with the Uzukage. He’ll forgive me,” Narumi said. He ruffled MInato’s hair. “Write me, okay? You can tell me all about how you’re doing in school.” 

Minato was still for a moment, and then threw himself forward so enthusiastically Narumi nearly toppled over. Narumi stumbled back and quickly steadied himself, mindful of the kid now attached to his waist. He rubbed Minato’s hair, gentler than his previous vigorous ruffling. “You’ll see me again, Minato, I promise. We’re family.” 

MInato pulled away and gave him a tentative smile. “Okay. You’ll really come back?” 

“Absolutely. I never abandon the people important to me. Even if I have to break some dumb rules,” Narumi declared. 

Minato looked at him reproachfully. “You shouldn’t break the rules, Nii-san. They exist for a reason.” 

“Even if you have to break the rules to save someone you love?” Minato fell silent. Narumi laughed and poked his forehead. “Don’t break yourself thinking too hard.” 

“I won’t!” Minato protested. “You just said something interesting, that’s all.” 

“What, I’m not normally interesting?” Minato shrugged sheepishly in response. “See if I ever train you again!” 

Narumi glanced back and spotted Tsubame waiting at the entrance. “I should go..” 

Minato attempted a smile. “Bye, Nii-san.” 

“I’ll see you again, Minato. It’s a promise,” Narumi said, before walking to where Tsubame waited. 

Tsubame looked up as he approached. “Ready?” 

Minato was sitting alone on the swing, his scroll lying unopened in his lap. Still, Narumi nodded. “Ready. Let’s go home.” 

***

The war waged on. It wasn’t as bad as it had been--after a few final skirmishes on the Suna front before they managed to get the news of the treaty to every squad, the fighting with Suna and Kiri was over. The kids that had been kidnapped from Kiri were still in Uzushio, but Narumi figured they were waiting for things to calm down a bit more before sending them home. They still had Iwa and Kumo to contend with, after all. 

Occasionally, talk over another peace treaty would come up, only to fall through as someone disagreed with someone else. Narumi didn’t hear about them all that much--he spent most of his time outside of Uzushio, in the field with a squad that, in the absence of Tsubame and Jiraiya, usually consisted of Tsunade, Dan, Sakumo, Kaede, and Orochimaru, depending on who was cleared for missions at the time. 

As it turned out, they were all accustomed to working together. Tsunade and Orochimaru had been on the same genin team, of course, but Dan and Kaede had actually been on a genin team together as well; the third member of their original team had quit being a ninja due to family problems. Sakumo, the only one not to be in the same year of the Academy as one of the others, had been placed onto a team with Kaede and Dan following the deaths of his original teammates. Once Dan and Tsunade had gotten to know each other, the two teams had regularly combined for training and missions. Tsubame had once been their regular squadmate from Uzushio; now, that was Narumi. 

Narumi didn’t see much of Tsubame. He was in the field, and Tsubame, as the Uzukage, now had to stay in Uzushio. They had the linked scrolls that Tsubame had once shared with his sister, but those were strictly business only. Occasionally, a small sparrow would show up with a tiny message strapped to its leg. Those messages were always short, and always coded. 

Narumi never knew how to read them; the only one who did was Orochimaru. Narumi could only be grateful that Tsubame wasn’t the type to put passionate spiels in his messages, or else Narumi would have never been able to face Orochimaru again. 

They went to a lot of places. They fought a lot of battles. They ate a lot of ration bars. 

And, in the end, Narumi always returned to Uzushio. 

The village was slowly rebuilding. There were more chuunin and jounin in the village now, so they weren’t just relying on the efforts of the genin and civilians. It seemed like every time Narumi came back, a new section of the village had been rebuilt. No one had gotten to the house on the far-off island, but Narumi was in no rush, seeing as he was still rarely in Uzushio. Most of the time when he was in the village, he ended up staying with Tsubame, who was still hosting the kids. 

Narumi always expected them to be gone, but they were always there--one year later, two years later, until he really began to wonder when Tsubame intended on returning them to their parents. 

The fighting was finally dying down again--another Kage Summit had just been called, this one somewhere in Kumo, and so all missions had been suspended until further notice. To Narumi, it seemed like the perfect time to send the kids home, but when he returned to Uzushio from his latest mission, he found them in the house as normal--two of them, at least. The five-year-old and seven-year-old were sitting in the middle of the living room, playing some kind of game with cards and colorful sticks, but the nine-year-old was nowhere to be seen. 

“Where’s, uh, Hyousuke?” Narumi asked. 

Tsubame, pouring over his notes at the table, glanced up at the clock. “It’s only two. He’s still at the Academy.” 

“Wait, the Academy? What’s he doing there?” 

“Taking the placement exam,” Tsubame said. “I’m not sure if the Mizukage gave him any lessons, so the first year may be too easy for him. Besides, he’s already nine--he’d be the oldest one in the class.” 

“The placement exam?” Narumi echoed, feeling like he’d missed something somewhere along the line. 

“It is a bit late. I should have enrolled him at least a month ago, but the elders were being stubborn about it. As usual,” Tsubame said bitterly. 

“Wait, wait, wait, why’s he joining the Academy? What about sending him back to Kiri?” 

Tsubame didn’t look up from his paper. “He’s not going back to Kiri. None of them are. Those were the terms of the peace agreement. The older children remain in Konoha, and the younger ones remain in Uzushio.” 

“I thought you didn’t agree with kidnapping them!” Narumi exclaimed. 

Tsubame glanced over at the two children, still in the midst of the game but staring directly at Tsubame and Narumi. “We shouldn’t talk about this here. To my office.” 

Narumi stormed away from the table and went to Tsubame’s office. He didn’t even wait until Tsubame had activated the noise suppression seals to give them privacy before demanding, “So what’s the big idea? They should be with their family!” 

“Uzushio’s defenses have been completely destroyed. It will take years to get the seals back to the level they were at before the attack. We can’t afford another war. The children are an assurance of good faith.” 

“They’re kids, Tsubame!” Narumi slammed a hand down on Tsubame’s desk. “They shouldn’t be involved in this at all! I know you disagreed with kidnapping them.” 

“I wasn’t the Uzukage then,” Tsubame snapped. “I had the liberty to disagree with my sister in my private time. Of course taking hostages is a disgusting practice, and I would gladly send them home if I could! But I have to make decisions I don’t like for the sake of the village.” 

“You don’t have to! Didn’t you say you wanted to change the way things are now?” Narumi said. “Just send them home!” 

“I can’t, Narumi. I can’t.” Tsubame slumped down in his chair and covered his face with one hand. “I want to, but I can’t.” 

“You’re the Uzukage,” Narumi said. “If you decide to send them home, that’s that!” 

Tsubame laughed brokenly. “If only it were that simple.”

“You’re just giving up, dammit! If you believe in something, then fight for it! Don’t just give up because it’s for the good of the village or whatever.” Narumi turned around and stomped forwards, only to quickly reach the other wall. He turned around and stomped in the other direction, only to quickly run into the same problem. Narumi ran his hands through his hair roughly. “Argh! I can’t think in this tiny room!” 

He jabbed a finger at Tsubame. “Don’t go anywhere! I’m gonna persuade you to send them back!” 

Narumi stormed to the door and flung it open. 

“I know you will,” he heard Tsubame say softly just before the door slammed shut. 

There was nothing better than a fight to help him sort through his thoughts. With the Summit going on, the village was full of jounin ready and eager to spar, particularly with someone they’d never trained with before. When Narumi went to one of the many training areas around Uzushio, he found three jounin already there, and by the time he finished sparring with them, even more had turned up. The Uzumaki in particular were fun to practice with--they had almost as much stamina as he did. His last match lasted for half an hour until they both got too hungry to continue. And no wonder--it was past ten when he finally got home. 

The main room was dark and empty, dinner left out for him by Suikawari, an Uzumaki woman who took care of the house and the kids while Tsubame was busy. A quick peek into the kid’s room showed that they were all asleep. Tsubame, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. Instead, Narumi found a note informing him Tsubame had left for the Summit and a scroll officially granting him four weeks of leave in Konoha, lasting for the rest of December and most of January. 

Narumi sighed and began to pack up his things. “At least Minato will be happy.” 

He waited until morning to leave, in order to say goodbye to the kids and tell Suikawari how long he would be gone. He approached Konoha leisurely, to avoid alarming any shinobi in the area, and ended up escorting a merchant from Nami halfway there. In this time, Nami was apparently a prospering merchant country, trading with countries from as far away as the other side of the continent; however, given the war, they hadn’t been able to hire shinobi to protect their merchants and had suffered losses as a result. The merchant considered himself quite lucky to have encountered a shinobi--a shinobi from Uzushio, no less, Nami’s sister island country--who just happened to be traveling in the same direction. Narumi, for his part, didn’t mind taking on an unofficial mission now and then. It wasn’t like he had anything better to do. 

They parted at the gates of Konoha. Narumi wandered around for a bit--he’d never been to Konoha without Tsubame, and he realized too late that he hadn’t informed any of his friends he was coming--before heading to the Academy. 

To his surprise, the Academy was crowded with parents. A quick question to one of them, an Uchiha who gave him a dirty look, revealed why. Going at the speed of the merchant caravan had delayed him slightly--he’d arrived just in time for the final exam. 

The first of the students emerged, proudly holding up a headband, and was quickly congratulated by friends and family. A few minutes later, the next one emerged, and then the next. 

“Ah, Narumi-kun, I see you made it.” 

Narumi turned to find Mito Senju approaching him, accompanied by two people he assumed were members of the Senju clan as well. “Mito-san--uh, Mito-sama. It’s been a long time” 

She chuckled. “Mito-san is fine. Tsubame is more formal than he needs to be.” 

“Are you waiting for Kushina?” 

She nodded. “Kushina and Minato.” Narumi felt his eyes widen, and Mito chuckled. “You didn’t think I’d follow through, would I? Oh, yes, I’ve kept an eye on the both of them. Your younger brother has quite a talent for fuinjutsu.” 

Narumi grinned. “Yeah, he really does. He’s gonna be a great shinobi. Kushina, too.” 

Mito smiled, but Narumi couldn’t help but think it looked somewhat sad. “Yes, she will be.” 

The door to the Academy slammed open so loudly that everyone in the vicinity turned to look. “Yeah! I passed!” Kushina shrieked. Eyes lit up with glee, she scanned the crowd. She grinned when she spotted Narumi and Mito and ran forward, forcing everyone to get out of her path. “Baaaaaaa-saaaaaaan! Naaaaarumi-niiiiiii!” 

She screeched to a halt, panting, and grinned up at them. “Look! I passed!” 

Narumi held out a fist, and she bumped her fist against it. “Good job! Any idea who your teammates are going to be?” 

“I hope Mikoto is on my team! She’s amazing at genjutsu and I suck at genjutsu, and I’m really good at ninjutsu and Mikoto isn’t so good at ninjutsu, and she likes fighting from far away and I like to fight close up so we’ll work well together. And Minato should probably be on my team ‘cause he’s gonna get killed without me to protect him. But we won’t find out for another week,” she said. “Sensei says they have to finalize it after they find out who passed. Like me! I passed! They were super impressed with my water clone.” 

Narumi spotted a head of blond hair leaving the Academy. Minato didn’t look up as he wove through the crowd, too busy staring at the headband in his hands. Narumi held up a finger to hush Kushina and Mito and crept forwards, approaching Minato from behind. As soon as Narumi was directly behind him, Minato started to turn, but Narumi snatched him up and heaved him into the air and onto Narumi’s shoulders. 

“Ah! Nii-san!” Minato exclaimed. “What are you doing?” 

Narumi grinned and headed back to Kushina and Mito, still bearing Minato on his shoulders. “What, you don’t like it? I always wanted someone to do this to me when I was a kid.” 

“I’m not a kid,” Minato protested. “I’m a genin now. That means I’m officially an adult.” 

“Congratulations,” Narumi said. “Any idea about your teammates?” 

“I don’t know,” Minato said. His fingers tensed in Narumi’s hair. “I . . . hope I’m on the same team as Kushina-san.” 

“Oh, is that how it is?” Narumi teased. 

“Nii-san! It’s not like that!” 

“Sure, sure.” Narumi crouched down, allowing Minato to unsteadily get off. “So, who’s up for a celebratory dinner?” 

One of the Senju accompanying Mito leaned into whisper something to her. “Ah, of course. I’m afraid I won’t be able to join you. Congratulations, Kushina, Minato. Enjoy your dinner.” 

Kushina latched onto Narumi’s hand and looked up at him with a gap-toothed smile. “I want ramen, Narumi-nii! Ramen, ramen!” 

Narumi looked over at Minato. “Ramen sounds good.” 

Minato nodded so rapidly Narumi thought his head might pop off his shoulders. “Ramen is good! I like ramen!” 

Ichiraku wasn’t open at this point in time--Narumi had checked. Kushina eagerly led them to her favorite restaurant, a small, run-down restaurant located near her apartment. 

“I go here all the time!” she said. “They make the best broth out of every ramen place in town. I know, ‘cause I’ve tried them all. Hey, Teuchi-nii, I want an extra egg!” 

Narumi gaped as a young man, somewhere in his late teens, poked his head out from the kitchen. “Welcome back, Kushina-chan! Coming right up.” 

“And I want two bowls, please! It’s a celebration! I graduated today,” Kushina declared. 

“Congratulations!” Teuchi called back from the kitchen. 

Kushina turned her attention back to Narumi and Minato. “I’m gonna learn how to make ramen as good as Teuchi-nii’s someday. ‘Cept I can’t afford the good ingredients on my stipend right now so I was waiting to be a genin to learn. And then I’ll be able to make whatever I want!” 

“If you need someone to try your food . . . I’d like to,” Minato offered hesitantly. 

Kushina grinned at him. “You will? Thanks, Minato! Mikoto offered too. She’s super good at cooking. We can have cooking parties!” 

“Oh! Okay. That sounds fun. I don’t know how to cook at all,” Minato said. 

Kushina wagged a finger. “You gotta know how to cook if you’re gonna live on your own! Eating out all the time’s way too expensive. Jeez, Minato. But don’t worry, I’ll teach you everything.” 

Their ramen arrived, and Kushina fell silent for a moment as she devoured it. 

“Me and Minato’ve been spending lotsa time with Baa-san,” Kushina said, once she’d slowed down. “She’s been teaching us tons of stuff about fuinjutsu! ‘Course, I know a bunch of stuff already, but Baa-san knows way more! She’s amazing. I’m gonna be just like her when I grow up.” 

Minato nodded. “Mito-baa-san knows more about fuinjutsu than any of the books I found.” 

“Pfft, duh! You’re not gonna learn anything good about fuinjutsu out of some dumb book,” Kushina said. “You’ve gotta have a teacher! That’s how all the Uzumaki learn, right, Narumi-nii?” 

“Seems that way,” Narumi said. “Tsubame’s been teaching me the basics.” 

Kushina nodded. “And then once you know the basics, you get to go off and do your own thing.” 

“It still seems impractical to me to have so much of fuinjutsu reliant on oral tradition. I’ve been making detailed notes of our lessons with Mito-baa-san,” Minato said. 

Kushina wrinkled up her nose. “That’s the most boring part of fuinjutsu.” She lifted up her empty bowl. “Teuchi-nii! Seconds please!” 

Teuchi came over with a fresh bowl. “On the house, for our new genin here.” 

Kushina cheered. “You’re the best!” 

Minato frowned down at his bowl. “I like Mito-baa-san’s lessons. They’re very interesting,” he said. 

“Then write them down. I’m sure someone will appreciate it,” Narumi said. Minato gave him a brief smile before returning to eating his ramen. 

In the end, Kushina ate four bowls of ramen to Narumi’s three, and Minato’s one. Narumi waved off Minato’s attempt to pay and covered the bill himself. The sun had long since set by the time they all left the store. 

“Be safe walking home, you two,” Narumi said. 

Kushina waved as she ran off towards her apartment. “Bye, Nii-san,” Minato said, before heading off as well. 

Narumi stared after him. “Uh, Minato? Isn’t the orphanage in the other direction?” 

Minato jumped and laughed sheepishly. “Oh! You’re right. I must be more tired than I thought. Thank you for dinner, Nii-san. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“See you,” Narumi agreed, as he watched Minato run in the direction of the orphanage. He waited until both kids were out of sight before heading back to Tsubame’s apartment.


	8. Chapter 8

The bell above the door of the restaurant rang, and Narumi automatically looked up from his menu. As he spotted the newest customers, he grinned and waved. “Hey, over here!” 

Sakumo and Kaede, the first to arrive, joined him around the large table, sitting so close together that they were almost on top of each other. “Narumi,” Sakumo greeted warmly. “It’s been awhile.” 

“Yeah, since the mission in Iwa, right?” 

“That was a mess,” Sakumo sighed. “No medics, no Orochimaru . . .” 

“Well, it was Dan and Tsunade’s wedding,” Narumi said. 

“‘Cause they just couldn’t wait until after the war for their wedding like the rest of us. How long’re you here for?” Kaede asked, as she scoured the menu. “You’re not missing ours, are you?” 

“Nah, I’ve got until the end of January,” Narumi said. “I’ll be there for sure!” 

The bell rang again, and a few moments later Orochimaru slid into the bench on the other side of the table. “You haven’t ordered yet? Disappointing.” 

“I was waiting for Dan and Tsunade,” Narumi said. 

As if on cue, the bell rang yet again. Narumi glanced over, and his mouth fell open. “Whoa!” 

Tsunade glared at him. “Not a word, Namikaze.” 

“You’re huge!” Narumi blurted. He waved his hands around. “I mean, uh, holy shit! It’s massive! Are babies supposed to be that big?” 

Dan took the seat beside Orochimaru so Tsunade could have the end. Narumi had no idea how Tsunade was managing to sit down with a baby literally growing inside of her. “He’s a normal size,” she said. “And I can’t wait for him to be out! No training, no missions, and he never stops kicking.” 

“Two more months,” Dan said, patting her hand. 

Narumi stared at her stomach. “Whoa. I mean, I got your letter and all, but it’s different actually seeing it.” 

“It is fascinating,” Orochimaru agreed, staring at Tsunade’s stomach. “The creation of a human life . . . the cycle of death and rebirth continues . . .” 

Narumi had no idea what Orochimaru was going on about, as usual. He looked around the table for help.

Kaede eventually came to his rescue, continuing on as if Orochimaru had never spoken. “Yep, there he is! The true reason for the Senju wedding! Dan and Tsunade couldn’t keep it in their pants!” Kaede cackled. 

Narumi looked between them, at Kaede’s grin and Tsunade’s scowl. “Wait, is that really why?” 

“The elders insisted,” Tsunade growled. “I would’ve waited until after the war, but apparently it isn’t proper for the heir to the clan to pop out a baby before getting married.” 

“See, if you were an Inuzuka, this wouldn’t be a problem. No one gives a shit when an Inuzuka pops out a baby!” Kaede laughed. 

“Something you want to tell us?” Tsunade teased. 

“Not yet,” Kaede retorted. 

“Not for lack of trying,” Orochimaru said under his breath. Sakumo blushed and rubbed at the back of his head sheepishly. 

“What’re you gonna name him? Any ideas?” Narumi said. 

“We’ve got it all picked out. Kogane Senju,” Tsunade said. “We wanted to wait to see if it would be a boy or a girl, but . . .” 

“The elders,” Dan finished.

“Huh. And you just went along with what they wanted?” 

“You don’t know the elders,” Tsunade snorted. “They’re a pain in the ass. I have to listen to them at least some of the time, or they can make life a living hell. And I don’t really mind knowing ahead of time. I’d rather save my fight for the big things. Like sending him to school.” 

“School? You mean the Academy? Why would that be a fight?” Narumi asked. 

“Nah, not the Academy, I mean before that. You know, how a lot of civilian families send their kids to school from four or five years old,” Tsunade said. 

“Why send them to a civilian school? It would be entirely pointless,” Orochimaru said. “Simply enroll them in the Academy.” 

“The academy age has been shifting,” Tsunade said. “You’ve noticed, right? Kids are entering at six or seven instead of four like we did.” 

“Wasting time,” Orochimaru said. 

“They’re four,” Tsunade said. “They should be making friends, not deciding that they want to grow up to become killers.” 

“We hardly decided we wanted to become killers,” Orochimaru said. “We had our own goals, and becoming a shinobi was the way to realize those goals.” 

Tsunade shrugged. “Maybe it is pointless. Maybe he’ll grow up wanting to be a shinobi just because he’s grown up surrounded by them. Hell, when I was a kid, I never imagined being anything but a shinobi like my grandfather. But I’d like for him to have options.” 

Dan chuckled. “Who knows? Maybe he’ll end up wanting to be a monk.” 

“A monk? That’s your example? What kind of four-year-old wants to be a monk?” Tsunade said. “You should have said--uh. Daimyo?” 

“The Daimyo?” Kaede snorted. 

“I’d like to see you come up with something better!” 

“Fine! Maybe he wants to grow up to be a dog!” 

“A dog? That’s not a job. That’s not even human!” 

“Hey, I wanted to be a dog when I was a kid.” 

“You’re an Inuzuka, you’re practically half dog already!” 

Listening to his friends bicker, Narumi couldn’t help but smile. It was nice to put his worries about Tsubame and the kids from Kiri out of his mind, just for a little bit. Maybe that had been why Tsubame had given him a full four weeks in Konoha--a little time with his friends, away from the war, was just what Narumi needed. 

Narumi spent the next few days with his friends and the two kids, depending on who was busy. Dan and Tsunade were always busy with managing the hospital and preparing for the baby. Orochimaru was usually somewhere Narumi decided not to think too hard about. Sakumo and Kaede were usually free, but spending time with them usually ended with Narumi getting roped into helping plan the wedding, which they were extremely enthusiastic about; Narumi had learned quickly to not drop by their house unannounced. Kushina and Minato were both free until the team announcements, apart from spending time with Mito at the Senju compound, and were almost always eager to train or grab a meal with him. 

They were in the middle of training when, just as Narumi blocked a kick from Minato and a punch from Kushina, the ground shook. In the distance, Narumi could see a cloud of dust from the area near the village gates. Without a second thought, he sprinted towards the gate, the kids hot on his heels. 

By the time they reached the gates, such a crowd had gathered that even the Uchiha officers couldn’t get through. Narumi crouched down. “One of you get up on my shoulders and tell me what you see.” 

Kushina moved first. Narumi grabbed onto her legs to steady her as he stood, wincing as her hands gripped his hair too tight. “Uh, it’s your friend, the one having the baby, and she looks really mad, and there’s a crater and a super old dude in the crater.” 

“A super old dude?” 

“Yeah, he’s got a bunch of white hair and a big scroll.” 

“Jiraiya!” Narumi exclaimed. 

Tsunade yelled something. “I can’t hear what she’s saying,” Kushina complained. 

“Then we’ll have to get closer.” Narumi pushed his way through the crowd, ignoring the dirty looks and angry muttering that followed him. 

As he got closer, he could hear Tsunade yelling. “Two years, you bastard! Where the hell have you been? Forget it, I’m not interested. You’re dead, asshole!” 

“Tsunade, you can’t kill him!” Dan exclaimed. “Think of the baby!” 

Narumi broke through the crowd; Dan had joined Tsunade, who was standing in front of a crater, hands on her hips. “He deserves it.” Dan looked at her sternly, and Tsunade snorted. “Oh, fine. Ugh, there goes our lunch break . . . hey, don’t you assholes have anything better to do than gawk!” 

The crowd quickly dispersed, eager to avoid Tsunade’s wrath. Dan met Narumi’s eyes, shrugged, and gestured towards Jiraiya before following after Tsunade. Narumi crouched to let Kushina down before walking to the edge of the crater. 

“You still alive, Jiraiya?” he called. 

Jiraiya groaned and dragged himself to his feet. “Three years out of the village, and this is the greeting I get . . .” 

“You missed her wedding. ‘Course she’s pissed.” Narumi offered him a hand and hauled him out of the crater. “What brings you back?” 

“Sensei called me back,” Jiraiya said. “Besides, those kids I was training are doing pretty well now--wait until I tell you about them! C’mon, let’s do lunch, I’m starving. Ah, wait, shit, I have to go see Sensei.” 

“I can wait,” Narumi said. He looked down at the kids, who were watching the exchange with unabashed curiosity. “Sorry, you guys mind training on your own?” 

“Yeah, okay, I was gonna to hang out with Mikoto anyways. You wanna come, Minato?” 

“I can come--I mean, okay!” 

The two of them raced off, and Narumi and Jiraiya fell into step beside one another. “How was Ame?” 

“A shithole,” Jiraiya said. “Still, that kid--he’s the real deal, Narumi, a complete genius. All five elements, in just three years! Not even Sensei and Orochimaru learned them that quickly.” 

“You’ll have to tell me all about it after your meeting.” 

Jiraiya grimaced. “He’s gonna chew me out, I can tell. Wish me luck. If I die, burn my porn stash so Tsunade doesn’t find it and bring me back from the grave to kill me again.” 

With the Academy out and missions on hold for the Summit, the administration building was pretty empty. Narumi passed the time chatting with the chuunin at the mission desk while he waited. 

In the end, it was two hours before Jiraiya emerged from the Hokage’s office, holding a file under one arm and looking like death. Narumi followed him out of the building and into the nearest restaurant, taking a seat across from him at the table. 

Jiraiya ordered a bottle of sake, and downed two glasses in short order. “Sensei has a sick sense of humor. He’s making me take _genin_!” 

“So? I mean, you were training some kids from Ame during the war, right? Isn’t that basically like having a genin team?” 

“It’s completely different! I didn’t have to do D-ranks,” Jiraiya groaned. 

“You can’t just go right to C-ranks?” Narumi asked. 

“I wish. Genin teams are required to do a certain number of D-ranks. They probably figured that otherwise everyone would avoid doing them.” Jiraiya gulped down another cup of sake and slid the folder across the table to Narumi. “I can’t bear to look. Just tell me I don’t have a Hyuuga or an Uchiha.” 

Narumi flipped through the folder and had to suppress a grin. There, in the back of the folder, was Minato’s profile. He shook his head and closed the file. “Bad news, Jiraiya, your team is made up entirely of Uchiha and Hyuuga. . .” 

“What? Give me that!” Jiraiya snatched up the file and skimmed it quickly. He breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, good, they’re all from civilian families. I hate dealing with clans.” 

As the waitress brought their food, Jiraiya pulled out the first profile and read through it. “Good taijutsu scores, average ninjutsu, decent academic scores . . . not bad, all around. Could be worse. Let’s see . . . good ninjutsu scores, average taijutsu and academic scores, again, not bad. And last but hopefully not least . . . good ninjutsu, good academics, and average taijutsu--wait, Namikaze? Ha!” 

Jiraiya reached across the table to slap Narumi’s shoulder enthusiastically. “Looks like your baby brother’s in my hands! Ah, this is great . . . seems like a team with a lot of potential.” 

Narumi squinted at the folder. “You can tell that from this file?” 

“Well, they’re civilians, but they passed the exams on the first try and didn’t do badly, which means they’ve been working hard without any previous training from their families,” Jiraiya said. “Also, because they’re not from clans, they aren’t stuck in any boxes. So many clan kids think that because their clan does something, they have to do it to, even if they’re shit at it. With these kids, I can find what suits them and make them shine! And, of course, Minato here’s your brother. With genes like that, he’s bound to be a great shinobi. It’s like getting a clan kid without all the bullshit baggage.” 

The bell above the restaurant door rang. “Oh, hey! Jiraiya and Narumi!” 

Kaede dropped into the seat beside Jiraiya without further ado. “Move over, porcupine.” 

“Excuse us,” Sakumo said, as he took a seat beside Narumi. 

Kaede reached over to snatch up Jiraiya’s file, dropping a file of her own on the table as she did. “You got genin too? This I’ve gotta see.” 

Narumi reached over and pulled her file towards him. Jiraiya leaned over the table to get a closer look. “I didn’t know you were taking a genin team, Kaede.” 

“I thought it would be fun,” she laughed. “I could do with some fun after all this war bullshit. Damn, Jiraiya, they really gave you a bland team.” 

Narumi flipped to the first page, a girl who looked strikingly like Shikamaru. Jiraiya snorted. “A Nara? Good luck with that one.” 

Kaede cracked her knuckles. “I can be pretty motivating.” 

Narumi pulled out the next profile and found a name he actually recognized--Mikoto Uchiha, Sasuke’s mother. Jiraiya winced. “Ouch. They saddled you with an Uchiha. Have fun with that.” 

Kaede shrugged. “I guess they figured I wouldn’t complain about it. It’s not like she can steal any of my techniques, since most of them require a partner.” 

“Where is Hachimaru, anyways?” 

“He’s only interested in yakiniku restaurants.” 

Narumi turned to the final profile, and blinked in surprise. “You got Kushina?” 

Kaede grinned. “I know, right? The Uzumaki kid! I figure her and me are gonna get along just fine.” 

Jiraiya’s brow creased for a moment, before it smoothed out as he smacked Kaede on the back. “Better you than me! I’ll take my blank slate team any day over clan bullshit.” 

Kaede elbowed him. “My team’s gonna kick your team’s butt, shrimp!” 

“One centimeter! One, lousy centimeter!” 

“More like two.” 

Narumi looked down at the file in front of him. “Something wrong?” Sakumo asked. 

Narumi shook his head. “Nah, nothing. C’mon, let’s eat!” 

Still, he couldn’t help but wonder--Kushina wasn’t a jinchuuriki yet. So when did she become the Kyuubi jinchuuriki?

***

Minato waited with bated breath. Five teams so far, fifteen students, and neither he nor Kushina had been called. 

Sarutobi-sensei cleared his throat. “Team Six! Mikoto Uchiha, Kushina Uzumaki--” 

Kushina whooped and jumped up from her seat. “Yeah! Mikoto and me are on the same team! Told ya, Mikoto!” 

“Sit down, Uzumaki! I repeat, Team Six, Mikoto Uchiha, Kushina Uzumaki, and Shikanao Nara!” 

“No!” Kushina wailed. “Sensei, you were supposed to put Minato with me!” 

“Take it up with the Hokage, Uzumaki! Team Seven! Michio Akamatsu, Chinami Wakimizu, and Minato Namikaze!” 

Minato looked around the room for his teammates. Michio and Chinami were two of the other civilian students in his class, but he didn’t know them well. He wished he could have been on Kushina’s team, with someone he knew, instead of two strangers. 

Michio gave him a wave and Chinami smiled slightly when he met their eyes, so at least they seemed nice. 

Sarutobi-sensei finished reading of the last of the teams, ten in total, before calling them back to attention. “You have an hour break for lunch, after which your new sensei will come fetch. You’ve done well. Continue to make your village proud, and embody the will of fire!” 

The students erupted into cheers as their teacher left the room. Before Minato could even stand, Michio joined him at his table. “I don’t think we’ve ever talked. I’m Michio.” 

Minato shook his hand. “Minato.” 

“And I’m Chinami,” the third member of their team said, as she claimed the other seat next to Minato. “Would you like to eat lunch together?” 

“Of course,” Minato agreed. “By the swing?” 

He waved to Mikoto and Kushina as his team left the room. Kushina made a face at him, likely expressing her displeasure at the team arrangements. He shrugged and gave her a sympathetic smile in return. 

Michio and Chinami unpacked their lunches as they sat down. “Minato-kun, don’t you have a lunch?” Chinami asked. 

“Ah . . . no, I forgot.” 

“I almost did too!” Michio said. “I ran out the door without all my stuff and my mom had to chase me down.” 

“You can share mine,” Chinami said, pushing her bento towards him. “My mother always makes too much for me, so I usually share with friends.” 

“Here, mine too,” Michio said. “My mom always makes me a snack after school anyways.” 

Minato gave them both grateful smiles. “Thank you.” 

“No problem! We’re teammates now,” Michio said. “I gotta say, I’m glad we’re all from civilian families.” 

“Why do you say that?” Minato asked. 

“Everyone knows that the jounin favor the kids from shinobi families,” Michio said. “All the civilian kids who joined the Academy say so. If you’ve got a team with civilian kids and shinobi kids, the jounin-sensei almost always gives all his attention to the shinobi kids. ‘Cause they’ve got more potential, or something.” 

Minato frowned. “That’s not right. The jounin-sensei should give their attention to each student equally. Don’t the civilian students complain to someone about it?” 

“Who’d take ‘em seriously?” Michio said. “It’s not like there’s anyone in charge of the jounin-sensei besides the Hokage, and they’re not gonna let a genin go see the Hokage just to complain. The jounin-sensei can do whatever they want with their genin. Everyone knows that.” 

“Ah . . . I guess they don’t really talk about things like that at the orphanage,” Minato said. 

“Well, that makes sense. I mean, the orphanage basically just feeds into the Academy, doesn’t it?” Michio said. “That’s what my parents say.” 

Minato shrugged. “In most cases, yes. If someone has no talent with the shinobi arts, usually they’ll do something else, but most of us go to the Academy.” 

“I have a few friends from the orphanage,” Chinami said. “They didn’t pass the exam, though.” 

“That test was hard!” Michio complained. “I thought I failed for sure. I’m terrible at academics, and my henge is just awful. I guess my taijutsu pulled me through.” 

“I did the best in the ninjutsu section,” Chinami said. “My taijutsu and academic scores are okay, though.” 

“I’m best at academics and ninjutsu,” Minato said. “My taijutsu is . . . a work in progress.” 

“Yeah, I was thinkin’ about that!” Michio said. “You almost got Uzumaki last time we had taijutsu practice. Have you been doing lots of training on the side?” 

“Ah, no . . . well, a little, I suppose. Kushina-san and I have been training a lot more together,” he admitted. “We’ve been studying fuinjutsu together.” 

“Whoa! So that’s why you two’ve been all buddy-buddy. I thought you were dating or somethin’,” Michio laughed. 

Minato felt his face flush. “M-me? And Kushina-san? O-of course not, that would be ridiculous.” 

Michio grinned broadly. “But you wanna, am I right?” 

Minato buried his face in his hands. “It’s not like that . . .” 

Michio laughed and elbowed him. “Don’t worry, Minato, your secret’s safe with us.” 

“I think it’s sweet,” Chinami said, with a happy sigh. “Training together . . . falling in love . . .” 

“In love?” Minato yelped. “It’s not like that, really!” 

The other two laughed. 

“You’re a lot of fun, Minato!” Michio said. “I’m glad, I thought you were some jerk with a stick up your ass.” 

“Eh? Really?” Minato asked. 

Chinami smiled awkwardly. “I have to admit, I thought you were a little standoffish too . . .” 

“Is that the kind of impression I give off?” He hadn’t even noticed; he’d have to pay more attention to how people perceived him. 

“Don’t worry too much about it!” Chinami said. “I mean, I thought Michio was a clown, and he’s okay so far.” 

“What! Hey, I put a lot of effort into being the class clown!” 

“You mean being seen as an idiot was intentional?” 

“Admit it, class would’ve been ten times as boring without me!” 

They finished their lunch just as the bell rang to announce the hour was up, and returned together to the classroom. Kushina seemed cheerful again, and waved at him happily as his team claimed the desk behind her. 

She spun around in her chair to talk to him. “Nao-chan’s pretty funny, actually! Did ya know she likes to play mahjong and go and shogi and stuff? How’s your team?” 

“They’re nice,” Minato said. 

Kushina eyed them skeptically. “Well, Michio can almost beat me in taijutsu, so he’s okay,” she said. “And Chinami’s pretty good at ninjutsu, so I guess she’s okay too.” 

“We can hear you, Uzumaki,” Michio complained. 

Kushina stuck her tongue out at him. She turned back around as the door opened to admit the first of the jounin-sensei. More jounin followed the first, but none of them came for Team Six or Team Seven. 

The door opened again, when the room was almost empty, to admit two people Minato realized he recognized. They were his brother’s friends, the Inuzuka woman with the massive dog and the massive naginata, and the man with the mane of white hair who had been beaten up by the gates. 

The woman put her hands on her hips and scanned the room until her eyes landed on Minato’s section of the room. “Team Six, there you are! C’mon, brats, up you get!” 

Kushina whirled around, her eyes gleaming. “Minato, she’s so cool!” 

The woman laughed. “Let’s see how cool you think I am when I’m done with you!” 

Still grinning, Kushina left with her team. The man with white hair stayed at the front of the room. His eyes met Minato’s. 

“Team Seven, you’re with me,” he said. 

Minato and his new teammates exchanged looks; none of his them seemed familiar with the man. Minato wasn’t sure how to feel. The man was a jounin, and he was friends with Minato’s brother, so surely he was strong, but at the same time he had gotten beat up in front of the village gates. 

Maybe taijutsu just wasn’t his specialty, Minato consoled himself. 

The man led them to a training ground, the same one that Minato’s brother liked to use. “Okay, let’s do introductions,” he said. “Name, likes, dislikes, dreams for the future.” 

Minato looked around at his teammates, neither of whom seemed willing to start. “I’m Minato Namikaze. I like training with friends and studying fuinjutsu and ninjutsu. I dislike . . .” 

For a moment, he was stuck; most of his dislikes seemed far too personal to share. 

“I dislike . . . natto. And my dream for the future is to be Hokage,” he finished in a rush. 

Sensei, thankfully, didn’t call him out for rushing through the dislike part of his introduction. “Hokage, huh?” he said, grinning. “I can work with that. Who’s next?” 

“I’ll go!” Michio said. “My name’s Michio Akamatsu. I like taijutsu and pork bowls! And I dislike carpentry, even though my whole family is carpenters. I think it’s boring. And my dream for the future . . . I wanna be a jounin-sensei.” 

“A noble goal,” Sensei said. “And the last one.” 

“I’m Chinami Wakimizu. I like to design gardens. I dislike . . . eating fish. My family raises koi, so it’s always felt a little weird to me. And for the future, I want to master water-jutsu.” 

Sensei nodded. “I’m Jiraiya of the Sannin.” 

Minato looked at his teammates. They didn’t seem like they recognized his name either. 

Jiraiya-sensei sighed and waved a hand. “Nevermind. Anyways, I like training with my teammates, drinking with my friends, and . . . doing a lot of stuff you’re too young to hear about. I dislike people who betray their friends. And my dream for the future is to make you the best damn shinobi to come out of this village. But before that . . . I have one last test to give you.” 

Minato’s mouth fell open in surprise. No one had mentioned another test. 

“What? That’s not fair!” Michio exclaimed. “We already passed our final exam!” 

“Life’s not fair, kid. The jounin-sensei are allowed to give their genin any test they want. If you fail this test, it’s right back to the Academy for you. ‘Course, if you want to complain, you can always just go back right now. No? Good. The test is simple.” 

With a sly smile, Jiraiya-sensei held up two bells attached to string. “You just have to get these bells from me in the next three hours. Whoever doesn’t have a bell . . . fails.” 

Minato swallowed. ‘Simple,’ Jiraiya-sensei had said, but just looking at him Minato knew that unless the man was going easy on them, there was no way he would be able to get a bell on his own. A quick glance at Michio and Chinami showed similar misgivings. 

This test was definitely not as simple as it seemed. 

Jiraiya pulled out a timer and set it on the stumps. “Aaaaand . . . go.” 

Michio ran at Jiraiya. Minato grabbed him with one hand before he could get too far, grabbed Chinami with the other hand, and ran into the forest. 

“Hey, what’s the big idea?” Michio demanded. 

Minato shook his head. “We can’t take those bells from him on our own. He’s a jounin.” He’d had experience fighting Narumi with Kushina, and even when Narumi was going easy on him, Minato couldn’t beat him one-on-one. “If we work together, we might have a chance.” 

Michio frowned. “Yeah, I guess three-on-one is better odds.” 

Chinami nodded. “I don’t think I could take a jounin on my own. But what about the bells?” 

“We’ll have to work that out once we have them,” Minato said. “Right now, we need to make a plan to get those bells.” 

The other two nodded firmly. Minato met their determined gazes, and knew that they would do whatever they had to do to get those bells. 

They would pass this test. 

***

Kushina couldn’t help but bounce her leg up and down as she sat in front of her new jounin-sensei with her teammates. A genin! She was finally a genin! And she had a team! Minato wasn’t on it--she hoped he was going to be okay, that white-haired guy seemed kind of unreliable--but at least she had Mikoto. Plus, their new sensei seemed really cool. 

“Right! I’m Kaede Inuzuka, and this is my partner Hachimaru. Now, I know your names, I assume you know each other’s names, so I have just one question for you. What are your dreams for the future?” 

She waved her hand eagerly. “I’ll go! I’m gonna be Hokage!” 

“Hokage, I love it! Next!” Kaede pointed to Mikoto. 

“I’m going to be a jounin by the time I’m fifteen,” Mikoto said. 

“Jounin at fifteen! Great. Now you!”

“Dreams, huh,” Shikanao said. “I want . . . to be the head of the Cryptology department.” 

“Cryptology, huh? I don’t know anything about that, but I like it!” Kaede grinned at them all. “Okay, I’ve decided I like you. You’re my genin now. I could give you another test and then send you back to the Academy if you fail, but you all seem like interesting kids. Now, one more question! Don’t worry about getting this one wrong. What is the most important thing to a shinobi?” 

“Uh, their body?” Kushina guessed. 

Kaede laughed. “I guess in a literal sense I’ve never met a disembodied shinobi, but nope! Not what I was looking for.” 

“Chakra?” Mikoto guessed. 

“Bzzt! There’s a lot of taijutsu and weapon-work that doesn’t require chakra,” Kaede said. “I don’t know any shinobi that don’t use chakra, but there could be one!” 

“The mind,” Shikanao said. 

“Good guess, but not what I was thinking of either. The answer is . . . teamwork!” 

The three of them all exchanged doubtful looks. “Teamwork?” Kushina asked. 

“A lot of ninja work solo, especially in ANBU,” Mikoto said. 

Kaede wagged a finger. “That’s what you think. But ANBU, they get their equipment from someone, right? And someone gives them a mission? And someone debriefs them? And someone takes care of their injuries? And someone trained them until they were able to be genin? No one does anything alone. This whole village is one big team, and we all work together to protect each other. The most important thing to a shinobi is teamwork, and without it you’re as good as dead. But don’t worry about remembering that one. By the time I’m done with you, it’ll be drilled into your heads so hard you’ll never forget it.” 

Kaede gave them a wicked grin. Kushina’s smile spread across her face until her cheeks ached. Her heart was pounding in her chest, her body thrumming with excitement, her mind whirling with possibilities. She couldn’t wait to get started. 

***

Now that they were officially genin, Narumi didn’t see Minato and Kushina nearly as often. They trained in the mornings and spent their afternoons doing D-ranks, and were exhausted in the evenings. Jiraiya was putting his team through their paces, throwing every exercise he could think of at them in the hopes of finding out what they were good at. Kaede had been running constant drills with her team, making them get used to working together and honing their already existing skills. 

Narumi was only able to treat them to a congratulatory dinner a week after they became genin, when they had a day off. 

Kushina arrived first and immediately slumped into her chair. “Narumi-nii, I’m exhausted,” she groaned. “I thought being a genin was supposed to be exciting, but all we do is weed gardens and paint fences and boring stuff like that. I wanna move on to C-ranks, but Kaede-sensei won’t let us.” 

“Yeah, D-ranks have always seemed like a waste of time to me,” Narumi laughed. “But I guess someone has to do it!” 

“If I have to catch that stupid cat one more time, I’m throwing it into the Forest of Death,” Kushina muttered. 

The door opened to admit Minato. He looked even worse off than Kushina, with bags under his eyes and his hair uncombed. Jiraiya must have really been pushing his team hard. Still, his smile was the same as always. “Hello, Nii-san,” Minato greeted. “Kushina-san.” 

“Minatooooo,” Kushina whined. “Is your sensei as much of a hardass as mine? My bruises have bruises! I’m never gonna look at a naginata the same way again! I have nightmares about being chased by dogs!” 

Minato’s eyes lit up. “Jiraiya-sensei is amazing! He knows a lot about fuinjutsu, did you know? And he knows a lot about ninjutsu and creating jutsu, he says his teammate is interested in that kind of thing.” 

“D-ranks,” Kushina whined. 

“They’re not so bad,” Minato said. “I had to do chores like that at the orphanage all the time, since we couldn’t afford to hire genin.” 

“Ugggh, you’re such a goody-two-shoes,” Kushina groaned. Minato shrugged, and Kushina grinned and slung an arm around his shoulders. “That’s why you need me! I’ll get you into trouble, no worries.” 

“Shouldn’t we be staying out of trouble?” 

“Where’s the fun in that?” 

While they playfully bickered, Narumi went ahead and ordered. Kushina wasn’t shy about ordering as much as she wanted, but he knew that Minato would be careful about ordering too much when someone was paying. He was a genin now--he needed all the energy he could get. 

Minato’s mouth fell open when the waitress brought by the food Narumi had ordered, so much that the table underneath was barely visible. “Nii-san! This is too much.” 

“You can take the leftovers home,” Narumi said. “Now eat up, before it gets cold!” 

After a moment, Minato nodded and picked up his chopsticks. “Thank you for the food.” 

“Thanks for the food!” Kushina cheered, before falling ravenously upon the meal. 

By the time they finished, the entire table had been cleared of food. They must have been hungrier than they’d been letting on. “Still hungry?” Narumi asked, eyeing the two genin.

Kushina leaned back and sighed. “I’m stuffed! That was pretty great.” 

Minato nodded and set his chopsticks aside. “Thank you for treating us, Nii-san.” 

“Don’t worry about it. You sure you don’t want more?” 

Minato smiled softly. “I’m sure.” 

Narumi paid the bill, and the three of them left the restaurant. Kushina headed back to her apartment, but Minato headed off in the opposite direction from the orphanage. Narumi watched him go, but Minato didn’t change direction at all. After a moment, Narumi followed him. Something seemed off with Minato, and Narumi was going to find out what. 

After a while of following Minato, Narumi began to think he’d been mistaken. Minato went to a ninja supply store for a few minutes, looked in a few bookstores, and otherwise acted like any other genin with a fresh supply of cash to spend. He didn’t buy very much, but that wasn’t surprising. Minato was the type to be careful with his money. By the time nearly an hour had passed, Narumi was about ready to call it quits, when Minato entered a laundromat. 

Narumi settled on the roof of the opposite building to watch. 

Minato unsealed a bag from a scroll--he was clearly putting his fuinjutsu lessons to good use--and emptied it into the washing machine. He put in a few coins, filled it with detergent, and then settled down with a book. 

Narumi watched and waited, wondering why Minato would come here to do his laundry. Maybe the laundry machine at the orphanage was broken, or they didn’t know how to clean shinobi gear properly so he’d taken to doing it himself. Narumi would have to keep watching to find out. 

Minato’s laundry wasn’t washed and dried for another two hours, and Minato took another half an hour to fold his clothes and seal them back up. Narumi followed him through the village; Minato still wasn’t heading to the orphanage. Eventually, they reached a park, one that had one of those play structures with a room underneath so kids could sit in it. The room was small, but could still easily fit a child Minato’s size comfortably. As Narumi watched, Minato entered the room and sat on the bench, pulling his knees up to his chest. 

Narumi decided he’d watched long enough. In a flash, he was at the entrance to the little room, crouching down to see through the door. He knocked against the wood. “Knock knock.” 

Minato jumped up so quickly he smacked his head against the ceiling. “N-nii-san! What are you doing here?” 

“Worrying about you,” Narumi said. “You’re not going back to the orphanage?” 

Minato shook his head and stared down at the floor, avoiding Narumi’s gaze. “I’m a genin now. Legally, I’m an adult. Everyone leaves the orphanage when they become a genin . . . I’ve been saving up my mission pay for an apartment, but I don’t have anyone to act as a guarantor so I have to pay a large deposit . . .” 

“You couldn’t ask Jiraiya? He’s your jounin-sensei, I’m sure he could help you out,” Narumi said. 

Minato shook his head rapidly. “I couldn’t impose on him like that!” 

“Well, lucky for you, you’ve got a big brother to impose on. C’mon, you’re not sleeping here. You can stay with me until we sort out an apartment for you.” Narumi held out a hand. 

Hesitantly, Minato put his hand in Narumi’s. Narumi hauled him out of the playground and wrapped an arm around his shoulders as he led him from the park. “How long’s this been going on?” 

“Since I passed the exam,” Minato said. “I should have expected it, but it slipped my mind. Some people failed the test on purpose so they wouldn’t have to leave.” 

Narumi sighed. “Jeez, just throwing kids to the wind like that . . .” 

“Genin pay can easily cover rent for a cheap apartment,” Minato said. “Two or three D-ranks are enough, and we do more than that in a week. We just didn’t start them right away, and then I wasn’t prepared to put down a deposit.” 

“You shouldn’t have to worry about that at all. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,” Narumi said. “You are going to take a shower and get some sleep. No arguments!” 

Minato, still looking at the ground, nodded. “Yes, Nii-san.” 

Narumi sighed and ruffled Minato’s hair. “And next time, tell me when you’re having trouble with something. I’m here to help you, ya know.” 

Minato didn’t reply, and they walked the rest of the way to Tsubame’s apartment in silence. While Minato showered, Narumi set up a spare futon on the floor of his bedroom. Tsubame’s room was unoccupied, but Tsubame was pretty private, so Narumi figured he should at least ask before letting someone else sleep there. He could take the floor for a week or two while he got Minato sorted out. 

Of course, Minato tried to protest the arrangement. “I couldn’t put you out of your bed, Nii-san! I’m fine with the floor.” 

“You’ve got training and missions,” Narumi said. “You’re taking the bed. Trust me, I’ve slept in worse conditions for longer periods of time.” 

Minato looked from Narumi to the bed, fingers plucking anxiously at the hem of his borrowed pajamas. “If you’re sure, Nii-san.” 

“I’m sure,” Narumi said firmly. “Now get in bed.” 

Minato crawled reluctantly under the covers as Narumi turned off the lights and got settled on the spare futon. 

“Thanks, Nii-san,” Minato whispered. 

“No need to thank me. We’re family, Minato. I’m gonna look after you no matter what.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes on Names
> 
> Kogane (黄金): Golden; inspired by Tsunade's favorite phrase, "One grab, a thousand gold" 
> 
> Shikanao (鹿直): Deer+Honest 
> 
> Chinami: (千波): 1000 Waves
> 
> Wakimizu (湧き水): Spring water 
> 
> Michio (道郎): Land+Central 
> 
> Akamatsu (赤松): Red Pine


	9. Chapter 9

Narumi left Konoha shortly after Sakumo and Kaede’s wedding—a boisterous affair with a horde of Inuzuka in attendance—and headed back to Uzushio. Word had finally come to Konoha that the Summit had ended, a treaty had been signed, and the war was officially over. He passed shinobi returning to Konoha in droves on his way, and was joined by several shinobi returning to Uzushio. By the time he finally arrived, he’d gotten to know many members of the Uzumaki and Mizushima clans, as well as several other jounin and chuunin. 

The village was even busier than normal, as the genin who had been left behind reunited with parents and siblings and friends. Even the canals were filled with people running over the water, anxious to get home. 

Narumi made his way to the Uzumaki compound, but didn’t get far before an ANBU landed in front of him. 

“Namikaze-san,” the woman said. “Uzukage-sama is waiting for you in his office.” 

“I’ll be there,” he said. 

As he made his way through the crowded streets and canals, Narumi wondered what Tsubame could want. A new mission, now that the Summit was over, or maybe something related to the Summit and the treaty. Or, Narumi thought with a grin, maybe Tsubame just wanted to see him. He probably wouldn’t summon Narumi to his office for something so frivolous, but it was a nice thought. 

The ANBU guarding the door opened it as he entered, clearly expecting him. Tsubame, to Narumi’s surprise, wasn’t sitting at his desk but rather staring out the window, towards the sea. 

“Leave us,” he said. 

The ANBU bowed and left. 

“All of you,” Tsubame said. Motion blurred in the corner of Narumi’s eyes, but when he turned his head, he saw nothing. 

Narumi leaned against the wall next to Tsubame. “You wanted to see me?” 

“Yes. I . . .” Tsubame breathed in deeply, then breathed out. Narumi leaned over, trying to look at Tsubame’s face, and saw that his brows were furrowed deeply. “There’s something I have to tell you. It regards a treaty.” 

“I thought it might.” 

Tsubame shook his head. His red hair fell to the sides of his face like a curtain, blocking Narumi’s view. “No, not that treaty. A treaty with Nami; the council has been arranging it. As you know, Uzushio has no daimyo, and thus lacks a significant source of income that the other countries have, while Nami has no shinobi village, and thus lacks protection. A treaty between the two countries benefits both parties.” 

“Yeah, okay, I get that. But what does that have to do with me?” 

Tsubame sighed again. “I apologize. It is easier to discuss the minute details than . . . than tell you what I have to tell you.” 

His fingers played with the ends of his hair. “We almost had a treaty with Nami ten years ago, you know. The daimyo of Nami has a daughter—Nami’s princess. She was meant to marry Tsubasa, but that fell through for obvious reasons. In the end, without the union to seal it, the treaty negotiations collapsed. And now I’m the Uzukage, in a position to take Tsubasa’s place, so. . .” 

Tsubame took a deep breath. “I’m getting married.” 

Narumi’s heart stuttered in his chest. “Married?” 

“For the treaty. To the daimyo’s daughter. I’m sending out some shinobi to bring her here tomorrow, and when she gets here, we’ll be married. I’m told . . . she’s quite pretty.” Tsubame laughed, but the sound was quiet and broken. 

“And you didn’t talk to me about it?” 

Tsubame shook his head. “I couldn’t. I couldn’t talk to you about it. I knew that . . . if I did, I wouldn’t be able to go through with it.” 

“So you don’t want this?” Narumi asked. Tsubame’s gaze remained fixed out at sea, turned away from Narumi. Narumi seized his shoulders and, before Tsubame could make him let go, spun Tsubame around to face him. “Dammit, Tsubame, talk to me!” 

He froze as he took in Tsubame’s face. His lips were pressed together firmly, trembling slightly, and his eyes were shiny and wet. 

“You think I want this?” Tsubame hissed. “Of course I don’t want this! I don’t care how pretty she is, or how much of a fitting wife she is. I’ll never love her.” 

Tears welled up in Tsubame’s eyes and spilled down his cheeks. “But I have to do this. For the sake of the village.” 

Slowly, Narumi let go of Tsubame’s shoulders and instead wrapped his arms around him, pulling him in closer until Tsubame’s face was pressed against his shoulder. Tsubame leaned against him limply, trembling. 

“I’m sorry, Narumi,” Tsubame whispered. “If I could, I would . . .” 

Narumi pressed his face against Tsubame’s hair. “It’s okay. I understand.” He pulled back just enough that he could cup Tsubame’s face in his hands and wipe away Tsubame’s tears. Somehow, he managed to smile. “I know what it means to be a Kage.” 

Tsubame reached up, running his hands through Narumi’s hair and pulling Narumi down until their foreheads rested against each other. “You’re too understanding, Narumi.” 

Narumi shifted slightly, pressing their lips together. Tsubame kissed back eagerly, his hands clutching at Narumi desperately. When Narumi pulled away, Tsubame’s cheeks were flushed pink. “I dunno about that,” he said. “I’m just as understanding as anyone should be.” 

Tsubame smiled softly and leaned against the window. “If everyone were like you, the world would be a much better place.” 

“Hey now, don’t flatter me when you’re dumping me. I’ll get the wrong idea.” Narumi stared out the window, looking out at the deceptively calm water. “You said there was a mission to bring her here, right? Send me on it.” 

Tsubame should his head. “Narumi, I couldn’t ask you to do that.” 

“I want to go. I want to meet her. I gotta see if she’s as pretty as they say,” Narumi said, giving him a grin. 

Tsubame scoffed. “You know I don’t care about that.” 

“Yeah, otherwise you wouldn’t be with me.” 

“Don’t say things like that,” Tsubame said. “You know I’ve always found you handsome. This girl, whoever she is, whatever she looks like . . . she could never compare.” 

Narumi ran a hand through his hair, and Tsubame gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry. I’ll refrain from saying such things.” 

Tsubame turned away from the window and returned to his desk. “I’ll add you to the mission roster. The team leaves from the mission desk tomorrow morning. Details are in the scroll. I’ll have a copy sent to you. Now, I—I have a lot of work to do. You should go.” 

“Okay. I’ll go. See you, Tsubame.” 

With one final glance at Tsubame—looking down at his desk, avoiding Narumi’s eyes—Narumi walked to the door. 

“Narumi. I . . . I really am sorry,” Tsubame whispered. 

Narumi paused, one hand on the door. “Yeah. Me too.” 

He left the Uzukage’s office and took to the streets, wandering them with no clear destination in mind. He drifted through the crowd and somehow ended up at the edge of the village, staring in the direction of the small, isolated island Tsubame had once taken him to. 

Narumi walked across the water until he reached the island, and walked through the house. It was made of some kind of stone, or a similar material, so he wasn’t too worried about walking through the house and going upstairs. It was a nice house. Big enough for two people to live comfortably, with a trapdoor at the top of the stairs that lead to the large, flat roof of the house. 

Narumi stretched out on the roof, staring up at the blue sky and the few clouds. 

“Dammit,” he said. 

His eyes burned. Narumi covered his eyes with his arm and tried to ignore the wetness seeping into the fabric. Even when he closed his eyes, he could still see Tsubame’s distraught expression, the tears pouring down his cheeks. He wanted nothing more than to run back to Tsubame’s office and rip up that damn treaty, then go to the elders and rip them a new one for making Tsubame feel like he had no choice but to go through with the marriage. 

He understood making sacrifices for your village, for the people you cared about. He’d sacrificed a whole world, all the friends he’d left behind, for the sake of building a better world. But that didn’t make it hurt any less, and it didn’t make him stop wanting to beat the shit out of anyone who made Tsubame cry. 

In this situation, though, Narumi couldn’t do anything, and he hated that more than anything. 

So, he went to get the Daimyo’s daughter. Her name was Shiomi, she was a few years older than Tsubame, and she was just as pretty as Tsubame had been probably been told. She smiled the whole way to Uzushio; she had been told Tsubame was handsome and strong, and she was excited to marry him. 

She hadn’t been told that he was sometimes cold and standoffish, that he had a streak of mischief he kept carefully hidden, that he loved children and that they loved him in return, that he was obsessed with seals and spent more time researching them than was probably healthy, and that he would never love her as anything more than a friend. 

Narumi tried not to dislike her, but he had to admit he wasn’t entirely successful. He may or may not have slipped a sea urchin (or two or three) into her bed when no one was looking. 

With civilians, they had to travel by boat and move carefully to avoid the whirlpools lurking under the water, so their trip from Nami was much slower than Narumi was used to. By the time they arrived, the whole village was decked out for the wedding, shinobi and civilians alike crowding in the streets to catch a glimpse of the princess. 

Narumi went to the wedding. Tsubame did look handsome in his formal attire, and the princess even prettier than she had looked on the trip over. Tsubame’s eyes were slightly red, and his hands trembled through the service. 

“Tsubame-chan is nervous,” an old Uzumaki woman chuckled to her friend. 

The other woman swatted her. “That’s our Uzukage, you know! And not that I blame him, with such a pretty wife . . .” 

Tsubame smiled at the end of the ceremony and smiled through the reception, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Narumi stayed for the whole reception, but didn’t approach Tsubame. Instead, he waited until a week later, went to Tsubame’s house, and knocked on the door. 

Hyousuke opened the door. Seeing him here, in Uzushio instead of home in Kiri, still made Narumi feel guilty. 

“Hey, Hyousuke, is Tsubame home?” 

The boy nodded and stepped back. “Tsubame! Narumi is here!” 

Tsubame appeared in the door, a frown fixed to his face. “Narumi. Should you be here?” 

Narumi shrugged and smiled at him. “Hey, you dumped me. You never said we couldn’t be friends.” 

Slowly, the corners of Tsubame’s lips turned upwards. “Friends? I suppose . . . I suppose I would like that.” 

Narumi beamed. “Great! Because let me tell you, I still have a lot to learn about this whole fuinjutsu thing.” 

Tsubame sighed, but he was still smiling, and the tenseness in his eyes had cleared. “Of course you’re after my fuinjutsu knowledge. Well, you might as well come in. We’ll make a respectable Uzumaki of you yet.” 

“I’d like to see you try!” Narumi laughed as he walked through the door. 

Even if he couldn’t have what he’d had with Tsubame, at least Narumi could make sure he was smiling. 

***

“I think Tsubame is avoiding me.” 

“Well, can you blame him? That did kind of end disastrously.” 

Narumi stared miserably down at his ration bar. Sakumo poked futilely at their attempt at a fire. 

“He’s been sending me on missions non-stop since he got married,” Narumi sighed. 

“He feels guilty,” Sakumo said. “This is his weird, emotionally-constipated way of making it up to you.” 

“By sending me on a hunt for a missing-nin? In the rain?” 

“Hey! At least you have my charming company!” 

“I’d rather be out of the rain. Or at least have a good meal.” 

Sakumo sighed. “It does make it hard to track. Ran, Gin, and Jun still aren’t back . . .” 

“Shouldn’t you go with them?” Narumi asked. 

He waved a hand. “I’d only slow them down. They’re better trackers than me. Now, if Kaede were here . . .” 

“Oh, yeah, how’s she doing?” 

Sakumo chuckled. “She can’t wait. She’s been counting down the days ever since we found out.” 

“He’s due . . . November, yeah?” 

“Yep, two months,” Sakumo said. “He’ll be in the same year as Kogane in school. Maybe they’ll even be on the same genin team.” 

“Yeah, maybe,” Narumi said. It was a strange thought—there were people alive who should have been dead, and people alive who shouldn’t have existed at all. Kakashi’s genin team might be totally different from what it had been. “How’s Kogane doing?” 

“Getting bigger every day,” Sakumo said. “Hard to believe it’s already been six months. He’s a quiet kid. I thought babies were supposed to be noisy, but Tsunade says he pretty much never cries. I wonder what Kakashi’ll be like . . . oh, I don’t know if I told you. That’s what we’re naming him.” 

“Kakashi Hatake. Nice name,” Narumi said. 

“Kaede thought of it, actually. We’re sticking with the Hatake naming tradition—” 

Both of them fell silent as the sound of footsteps racing towards them became apparent. They both took up positions behind trees, kunai at the ready. 

Three animals burst into the small clearing where they had made camp. At first, Narumi wondered if they were Gin, Jun, and Ran, but no—these were clearly dogs, not wolves, much smaller than Sakumo’s summons.

A teenage girl burst into the clearing, gasping for breath. “Sakumo-senpai!” 

“Tsume?” Sakumo exclaimed. “What’s wrong? What happened?” 

“Kaede-nee-chan,” the girl gasped. “She’s at the hospital! The baby’s coming! Tsunade sent me to relieve you.” 

“Already? But it’s too early!” 

“The baby doesn’t care!” Tsume said, shoving Sakumo forward. “Now get going! I might be a chuunin, but I can track just as well as you!” 

“Keep my summons with you,” Sakumo said, already moving forwards. “I’ve got to—” 

He leapt up into the trees and was gone, his words lost to the wind. 

Gin, Jun, and Ran appeared nearly a day later, having tracked down their missing-nin to an abandoned fishing hut where he had taken shelter from the rain, and disappeared just as quickly. 

“That’s not good,” Narumi said. “He uses water jutsu—he’ll have the whole river to use.” He grinned at the thought of a bit of a challenge. Tsume Inuzuka, too, was grinning. 

“Me ‘n the boys are ready any day,” she announced, cracking her knuckles. 

“Then let’s get going!” 

Tsume cackled. “Just barge in and hit ‘em, huh? I like your style!” 

With Tsume and her ninken as backup, Narumi was free to barge right into the fisherman’s hut. The missing-nin, clearly not expecting such a full-frontal assault if he expected to be tracked down at all, went down like a sack of bricks to Narumi’s punch. Narumi heaved him up over one shoulder, slapped a seal on him to keep him knocked out, and rejoined Tsume. 

The two of them headed back to the village. It took two days, all things told. Narumi left the missing-nin and the mission debriefing to Tsume in favor of running to the hospital. 

He burst through the doors and ran to the front desk, ignoring the dirty looks the staff gave him. “I’m looking for, uh, Kaede Hatake.” 

“Name?” 

“Narumi Namikaze.” 

The receptionist flipped through her files and nodded. “You’re on the list. Maternity ward, room 203.” 

Narumi thanked her and took off towards the elevator. The room was easy to find, but when he arrived it was empty except for Kaede, who was sleeping. A few flowers had been set up around the bed, along with several balloons declaring, “It’s a boy!” 

Narumi left the room and continued down the hallway until he encountered Sakumo staring into a window. Narumi joined him and looked through the room full of babies until he spotted the smallest of them, connected to twice as much equipment as the others. 

“He’s so small,” Narumi said. 

“They think he’ll be okay,” Sakumo said. “Tsunade herself is taking care of him.” 

Narumi put a hand on his shoulder. “I know he’ll be okay. He’s gonna grow up to be an amazing shinobi.” 

“I hope so,” Sakumo said, still staring at the baby. “Narumi, would you be his godfather?” 

“Yeah, of course—wait, what?” Narumi blinked rapidly. “Why me?” 

“Dan and Tsunade are busy with Kogane, and the hospital on top of that,” Sakumo said. “Tsubame has enough on his plate as it is. And as much as I like Orochimaru and Jiraiya, I wouldn’t trust either of them with a baby. There’s no one I’d rather take care of him than you if something happened to me and Kaede.” 

“I hope you know I’m gonna spoil him terribly,” Narumi informed him. 

Sakumo laughed. “I’m sure you will! He’s gonna take after Kaede, I can tell already. I’m gonna be beating boys and girls away with a stick.” 

“How’s she doing?” 

“Recovering. There were some complications, but Tsunade says she’ll be up and training again in no time.” Sakumo chuckled. “You should’ve seen her genin team. Ah—that reminds me. I think you might want to talk to Kushina-chan.” 

“Kushina? What about?” 

“Didn’t you hear? Mito Senju died recently,” Sakumo said. “I think we were on a mission during the funeral—it was during the summer. Tsubame didn’t tell you?” 

Narumi shook his head. “Like I said, he’s been avoiding me. I don’t think things are going well with his wife.” 

“I’m not surprised,” Sakumo said. “You sign up to marry a hot young shinobi and you get Tsubame. Don’t look at me like that! I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I just meant that if she expected to marry a gorgeous prince who would sweep her up in his arms and carry her off into the sunset, she was going to be unpleasantly surprised. Bad luck, really. Her first prince ended up being a princess, and her second ended up only interested in other princes. Or maybe it's karma?" 

“Whatever it is, she's not happy about it,” Narumi sighed. “She started glaring at me whenever I showed up at their house.” 

Sakumo whistled. “You went to their house? You’re a braver man than me.” 

“I couldn’t just abandon him!” 

“He got married. He wasn’t captured by enemy shinobi.” Sakumo thought for a moment and shrugged. “Granted, for Tsubame it may amount to the same thing.” 

“I wish there was something I could do to make it easier for him.” 

“Give it time,” Sakumo said. “Eventually, his wife will accept that Tsubame isn’t attracted to women at all, and then she’ll give up and let him do whatever he wants. It’ll just take, oh, ten years or so depending on how stubborn she is.” 

They were quiet for a moment, watching Kakashi through the window. 

“I wonder if they’ve had sex?” Sakumo wondered. “How does that work? Like, does he just lie back and think of Narumi?” 

Narumi shuddered. “Please, never say that again.” 

“Sorry, sorry,” Sakumo laughed sheepishly. “Kaede’s lack of filter is rubbing off on me. But like I was saying, you should check in on Kushina. She’s seemed quiet lately.” 

“Yeah, I might go do that. Any idea where she is?” 

“Kaede’s team has been training with Jiraiya’s team while she’s in the hospital,” Sakumo said. “Check training ground three.” 

Narumi left Sakumo at the hospital and ran to training ground three, stopping at the edge of the training ground to observe before entering. 

He spotted Jiraiya’s team first, practicing ninjutsu together. Chinami was spitting out globs of water, Michio was blowing out a stream of fire, and Minato was puffing out gusts of wind. In the background, Mikoto was training with shuriken and kunai, throwing them at Jiraiya. After a moment, Jiraiya froze in place. Narumi looked for the cause, and eventually noticed a shadow connected to his—Mikoto had attached wires to the kunai, and Shikanao had used the shadows from the wires for her jutsu. 

“Again, faster!” Jiraiya said, only to look over and spot Narumi. He waved and dodged a kunai. “Narumi, what brings you here?” 

“Is Kushina here?” 

Jiraiya jumped over a trio of shuriken and knocked a kunai aside with a kunai of his own. “She went off on her own, towards the river. You’re welcome to follow her if you want to get your head ripped off.” 

“I’ll take my chances!” Narumi said, waving at Minato as he headed into the forest. 

It wasn’t hard to find Kushina; he just had to follow the sounds of splashing and cursing. He found her attempting to stand on the river, only to wobble and fall into the river. Narumi had a feeling he knew what the issue was now; Kushina, an Uzumaki born and raised in Uzushio, had probably known how to walk on water since she learned how to channel chakra, and there was only one reason he could think of for her to have difficulties with it now. 

As Kushina dragged herself out of the river, Narumi knocked on a tree to get her attention. “Hey there,” he said. 

Kushina glared at him as she wrung the water out of her shirt. “What?” she snapped. 

“Having trouble?” 

Kushina turned her glare on the river. “I shouldn’t! I’ve been walking on water since forever! This is stupid.” She kicked at the river, splashing water through the air. She sank down, tucking her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. “Why’d Mito-baa-san have to pick me?” 

Narumi knelt beside her and ran a hand over her hair, pushing the wet strands away from her face. “Because she knows you’re strong.” 

“I can’t even do the stupid water-walking exercise. Even babies can do that,” Kushina muttered. 

“The Kyuubi is disrupting your chakra. You’re used to having a certain amount, and now you have way more than you’re used to,” Narumi said. 

Kushina looked at him with wide eyes. “Nii-san . . . you know about the Kyuubi?” 

“I had a hunch,” he said. “There aren’t many things that would give you difficulty with the water-walking exercise.” 

He stood and offered her a hand. “Come on. Let’s keep trying. You’ll get there!” 

Kushina took his hand, and he pulled her up. Kushina stared at the river. “Mito-baa-san said that I’m a vessel for the Kyuubi, but . . . if I fill the vessel with love . . . even a jinchuuriki can be happy. Nii-san, do you think . . . do you think Baa-san was right?” 

Narumi rubbed his chin. “Hmm, I dunno. I think we’d better test it out!” 

Kushina stared up at him. “What do you mea—eeek!” 

Narumi seized Kushina, hugging her so fiercely that she was pulled off her feet, and spun her around until she was laughing. He set her down, steadying her as she stumbled, and ruffled her hair. “So, how d’you feel? Does the vessel have a little more love in it?” 

Kushina wiped her eyes and smiled up at him. “It does. But I think we gotta do that one more time. Just to make sure.” 

“Okay, here we go!” 

Narumi hoisted her up and spun her around, laughing along with her. “Okay, Kushina! Let’s go!” 

“Go? Wait, what’re you gonna do?” 

Narumi put one last burst of speed before releasing her. “Fly, Kushina!” 

Kushina shrieked as she flew through the air, colliding with a tree with a smack. Kushina glared down at him from the tree. “Nii-san! That was mean!” 

“Yeah, but you’re sticking to the tree,” Narumi said. 

Kushina blinked in surprise, and looked down at her hands and knees, which were both sticking to the trunk of the tree. Slowly, she removed her hands from the tree, shifted from one knee to that foot, and then from the other knee to the other foot, so that she was standing on the trunk. 

“Hey, I’m doing it—whoa!” Kushina fell from the tree as quickly as she had stuck to it, landing in a crouch on the ground. “Nii-san, you saw, right?” 

“Told you, you’ll get it,” Narumi said. 

Kushina got to her feet. “Yeah! I’m not gonna give up, stupid river!” 

Narumi cheered as Kushina ran back to the river. “Yeah, you show that river who’s boss!” 

By the time the sun went down, both of them were soaked and shivering, but grinning from ear to ear as Kushina stood on top of the river. They made their way back to the training ground, Kushina on Narumi’s back, and found Minato waiting for them. 

He jumped to his feet as they approached. “Nii-san! Kushina-san! Are you alright? You’re soaked.” 

Narumi spotted Kushina’s victory sign out of the corner of his eye. “‘Course I’m alright. I’m gonna be Hokage, ya know! A little bit of training won’t bring me down.” 

“She’s fine, just exhausted,” Narumi said. “C’mon, time for dinner. My treat.” 

“Yeah!” Kushina cheered. “Ramen, ramen!” 

“Ramen it is!” 

***

On days when they had missions, Kushina met her team at Kaede-sensei’s house instead of the training ground. Mikoto was usually the first one to arrive out of the three of them, always punctual, and sure enough when Kushina opened the front door, Mikoto was already sitting in the living room, showing Kakashi-chan how to hold the shuriken properly. 

“Yes, just like that,” she said, as she looked up to give Kushina a smile. 

Kushina crouched beside them and ruffled Kakashi’s hair. “How’s it going, Kakashi-chan! Training already?” 

Kakashi peered at her through his half-lidded eyes, somehow managing to look both irritated and sleepy. 

Kaede rushed through the room, pulling her hair up in a pony-tail as she grabbed her mission pouch from the kitchen. “Only two and he’s already started asking us to put him in the Academy. He can’t wait to start training for real. Right, Kakashi?” 

Kakashi nodded once. 

Kaede grabbed her naginata from where it had been leaning against the wall and slung it across her back before turning to them with a broad smile. “Now, who’s ready to go to Kogane-chan’s house?” 

Kushina raised her hand. “Sensei, Nao-chan’s not here!” 

“I’m here. Are we leaving?” Shikanao stood in the middle of the entryway, not even bothering to take off her shoes. 

“Nao, right on time as always. Yep, we’re heading out. Got your stuff? Need help with your shoes?” Kaede asked Kakashi. 

With a nod, Kakashi grabbed his tiny little backpack and started to put on his itty-bitty ninja shoes. Kushina almost cooed over him—he was so adorable!—but that was a surefire way to get kicked in the shins. 

Kakashi insisted on walking, so their progress to the Senju compound was slow. “Where’s Sakumo?” Kushina asked Kaede, to pass the time. 

“Oh, he’s off with Narumi again,” Kaede said. “I feel like Narumi almost sees him more than I do! They’re tracking down a missing genin squad.” 

Mikoto frowned. “That would be . . . Isamu Uchiha’s team, right?” 

“Yeah, I should’ve known you would know,” Kaede said. “Their distress seal went off a few days ago.” 

Mikoto nodded. “I spoke to his mother yesterday . . . she’s very worried.” 

“I would be too. A fresh genin team activating a distress seal . . .” Kaede sighed. “Well, Narumi and Sakumo will find them.” 

The guard at the Senju gate waved them through, as he always did, and they walked with Kakashi to the house he stayed at when both Kaede and Sakumo were on missions. The door was opened by another of Narumi’s friends, a man with pale hair who Kushina had only met in passing a few times. 

“Hey, Dan, got another one for you,” Kaede said. Kakashi pulled off his shoes and wandered into the house in search of his friend. Kushina had babysat them both once as a D-rank. It was the easiest D-rank they’d ever taken; the kids had sat next to each other in silence, looked at some books, and gone outside to ‘train’ together. “Aaaaaand he’s off. See you when I’m home, Kakashi! Have fun with Kogane!” 

“Bye,” Kakashi’s quiet voice called from within the house. 

“I’ll look after him,” Dan said. “You’re due back in two weeks?” 

Kaede nodded. “Yeah, it’s your basic patrol mission. Sakumo might be back before me, we’ll see. Alright, kids, let’s head ‘em up and move ‘em out!” 

The four of them made their way to the gates, where Hachimaru joined them. Kakashi liked to turn Hachimaru into his mount of war, so Hachimaru tended to make himself scarce when he wasn’t in the mood to play. Kushina scratched him behind the ears—a difficult feat when Hachimaru was as tall as she was—and earned herself a grateful bark. 

“You know the drill,” Kaede said as they took off into the trees. “Stay alert, give a signal if you notice anything out of place. This is our last mission before the chuunin exams, so let’s make it a good one.” 

They fell into their usual formation, Kaede and Hachimaru in the front, Shikanao and Kushina on the sides, and Mikoto in the back. They passed another patrol as they made their way along their route, and Kaede exchanged brief words with them before they headed on their way. At night, they made camp. Shikanao, who couldn’t be trusted to wake up in the middle of the night, took the first watch, while Mikoto, who was always awake early anyways, took the last watch. Kushina ended up with the second watch, and passed the hours staring up at the stars visible through the gaps in the trees, Hachimaru curled around her back. 

For the first few days, nothing unusual or unexpected occurred on their route. This was why Kushina hated patrol routes; the majority of the time, they were the most boring missions available. She’d rather fight a bunch of bandits, or guard a merchant traveling from one town to another. Even escorting the Daimyo’s wife and her horrible cats to and from the capital would be better than endlessly running through the trees, staying on high alert even though nothing was going to happen. It left her with too much energy and nothing to do with it. 

And then, on the fourth day of their patrol, Hachimaru stopped and sniffed the air. Kaede did the same, and promptly wrinkled her nose. “Blood.” 

Kaede launched into motion, running off into the distance with Hachimaru. The three genin followed hot on her heels, Shikanao vanishing into the trees like the shadows she controlled to attack from a distance while Kushina and Mikoto ran directly into the fray. 

Kushina burst into a clearing to find Kaede already engaging a group of bandits. Kushina engaged the nearest of them, a woman with wicked set of brass knuckles, ducking underneath her wild blow and punching her directly in the diaphragm. The woman doubled over, gasping, and Kushina quickly knocked her out. A trio of kunai shot past her, and Kushina followed them. The bandit knocked aside the kunai, only to freeze as Shikanao caught him in her shadow, wide open for Kushina to take him out. 

Hachimaru leapt over her, landing on a bandit who had been attempting to sneak up on Kushina and tearing out his throat. Kushina turned to find two more bandits running at her, and on reflex whipped out a chakra chain and tangled them together. Mikoto followed up, knocking them out and tying them up with ninja wire. 

The clearing was still. 

Kaede pulled her naginata out of a bandit with a squelch and wiped the blade clean on the grass. Mikoto searched the fallen shinobi, tagging them for retrieval and picking up the various weapons she had thrown. 

“Hey, sensei?” Kushina asked, looking around the clearing. “What blood did you smell?” 

Kaede sniffed the air again and frowned. “I’m not sure. It’s still here but . . . muted.” 

Mikoto looked around in a circle, her eyes Sharingan-red. 

The ground burst upwards underneath them. Kushina toppled backwards, the back of her head smacking against a tree as rocks and dirt rained down on them. When the dust settled, a group of five shinobi stood in front of them, the line through their Iwa headbands as clear as day. 

“Shit! Get back,” Kaede snapped. “Where’s Nao?” 

A twig snapped behind them. Kushina whirled around, kunai at the ready, but relaxed as she recognized Shikanao’s familiar, spiky ponytail. “Nao-chan,” she called, only to freeze as a man stepped out behind Shikanao. 

No—he wasn’t just behind Shikanao, Kushina realized, as he stepped further into the clearing. Nao’s feet weren’t touching the ground at all, and blood dripped from her chest, from the gaping hole through which the man had shoved his hand. 

The man yanked his hand back, and Shikanao fell to the ground, limp and unmoving. 

He smiled. “She’s still alive,” he said. “Now, hand over the Uchiha, and we’ll let the other three go. If you hurry, I’m sure your hospital can save her.” 

Kaede snarled and aimed her naginata at him. “Over my dead body.” 

The man sighed and shook his head, as if regretful. “So be it.” 

Kaede met Kushina’s eyes in the instant before the man lunged, heading towards Mikoto. In a flash, Kushina was in front of him, Mikoto standing in the place where she had just been. The man didn’t stop, but Kushina ducked under his extended fist. He slashed at her with a kunai, scoring a long line across the arm she hastily raised to protect her face, only to be knocked back as Hachimaru leapt over her. 

“Go!” Kaede yelled, naginata whirling through the air. “Hachimaru and I will hold them off!” 

Kushina and Mikoto exchanged glances. “But, sensei!” 

“Go! These are jounin. Call for backup and get Nao back to the village!” 

Kushina forced herself to tear her eyes away from the fight and ran to Shikanao, joined by Mikoto. Together, they were able to get her off the ground, and ran from the clearing with Shikanao supported between them. 

Shikanao’s body was still warm, but blood was seeping from her wound. 

“We can’t go on like this,” Mikoto said. “We have to bandage her wound, or she’ll die before we reach Konoha.” 

Kushina halted only a second after Mikoto. A quick glance backward showed that all the enemy shinobi were still engaged with Kaede and Hachimaru. “We have to be quick.” 

As Mikoto bandaged Shikanao using the standard medical kid, equipped with seals anyone could use so long as they followed the instructions properly, Kushina hunted through her pockets until she came up with the distress seal. When activated, it would alert the mission center in Konoha, and they would send someone to the location of the seal. Kushina dropped it on the ground and hoped that would be enough. 

Mikoto sat back on her heels and wiped her face clean of sweat, accidentally leaving a streak of blood on her forehead. “There. That should hold her until we can get her to the hospital, but we have to move quickly.” 

“You’re not going anywhere, Uchiha bitch!” 

A body plowed into Kushina, sending her flying into a tree. She lay there for a moment, stunned. When she managed to pull herself together and get to her feet, she found Mikoto dodging spikes of earth and tossing out weapons and fire jutsu that were quickly blocked by walls that emerged from the ground at a split second notice. Kushina bit down on her thumb and started to draw on the ground. Her ink and sealing paper was somewhere in one of her pockets, and getting it out would waste time—blood and dirt would have to do. 

She finished and activated the seal, and the next time the man tried to summon up a wall of earth, nothing happened. His eyes went wide as Mikoto’s kunai speared him in the throat and chest. 

Kushina stumbled to her feet. Her thumb was still bleeding, but it was a minor wound at most. “C’mon. We’ve got to go.” 

Mikoto’s eyes went wide, and her hand clapped against her neck. She turned, her eyes looking upwards, before collapsing to the ground. 

Kushina leapt in the direction Mikoto had looked, colliding with a woman and knocking her down to the ground. The woman twisted out of Kushina’s grip and rolled them over, punching Kushina twice in the face before Kushina reached up and dug her thumbs into the woman’s eyes. She screamed and reared back, and Kushina kicked her off and hit the woman’s nose with the flat of her palm, directing the blow upwards, towards the brain. Her nose crumpled with Kushina’s hit, and the woman fell to the ground and didn’t move. 

Kushina wiped away the blood streaming from her nose. Shikanao was on the ground, bandaged but still bleeding, and Mikoto was unconscious from an attack of some kind. Two enemies had managed to get past Kaede and Hachimaru and attack them, and that meant they were in trouble. 

There was nothing else to do—Kushina couldn’t abandon Kaede and Hachimaru, and she couldn’t leave Mikoto and Shikanao undefended. Bringing her hands together, Kushina formed a seal and summoned six shadow clones. Before the Kyuubi, she’d managed three and been exhausted; the horrible fox had his uses. 

“Get them back to Konoha. I have to go help Kaede-sensei,” Kushina said. 

The clones nodded. Four of them paired up to carry Mikoto and Kaede, and the other two followed. With any luck, they would manage to get home without being dispelled. It was a risk Kushina had to take. 

There wasn’t a moment to lose; leaving her friends in the hands of the clones, Kushina turned on her heel and ran back to the clearing. 

She stopped short as she entered the clearing. She couldn’t see Hachimaru, but Kaede was still standing, naginata firmly planted in one of the four remaining enemy shinobi. Relief rushed through her. “Kaede-sensei!” 

Kaede sank to her knees. Kushina stepped forwards, and Kaede fell face-down in the dirt and didn’t move. 

The man who had attacked Shikanao looked at her, still smiling. “Looks like one of the little genin came back. Where’s the Uchiha, girl? Tell us, and we won’t hurt you. It’s too late for your sensei and the dog, but you don’t have to die.” 

At last, Kushina caught sight of Hachimaru, his coat red with blood. Rage bubbled up inside her like lava, more powerful than any of the ‘love’ that Mito had told her to cultivate. 

The man’s smile faltered as he took a step back. 

Kushina’s hands clenched into her fists, her nails biting into her hands and drawing blood, sharper than they should have been. 

“I’ll kill you,” she snarled. 

Red filled her vision, and she pounced. 

***

Narumi hefted the small body into his arms and sighed. “At least we saved one of them.” 

Sakumo, beside him, gently laid the final body onto a storage scroll and sealed it up. “Better than nothing,” he said grimly. “How are his eyes?” 

“Intact,” Narumi said. “I have them sealed up. Think Tsunade can reattach them?” 

“If they’re intact, then probably,” Sakumo said. He stood, holding the three scrolls in his hands. “We should get him back to the village quickly.” 

Narumi looked down at the boy in his arms. Isamu Uchiha, ten years old, recent Academy graduate, the only surviving member of his team. Narumi had wrapped bandages around his eyes and activated the seals in the bandages, but Sakumo was right. The faster they got him back to the village, the better. “Let’s go.” 

Before Sakumo could put away the scrolls, a hawk flew down from the sky, alighting on Sakumo’s shoulder. “A message from Konoha?” Narumi asked as Sakumo quickly shoved the scrolls away and removed a slip of paper from the hawk’s leg. 

“A distress signal was activated near us,” Sakumo said. “Only a few minutes ago.” 

“You go. You’re the better tracker,” Narumi said. “I’ll get Isamu back to the village. I’ll take the bodies, too.” 

“You can spend time with Kakashi,” Sakumo said as he handed Narumi the scrolls. “It’s been awhile since he saw you. If Kaede isn’t home, he’ll be with Dan and Tsunade.” 

“I’ll visit him once Isamu is taken care of,” Narumi said. 

With that, Sakumo took off with his wolves, while Narumi ran in the opposite direction. Isamu’s breaths were short and shallow, but at least he was breathing.

“Hang in there, Isamu,” Narumi encouraged as he ran. “You’ll be home soon. You can do it.” 

Isamu’s lips parted. “M-mom . . .” 

“She’s waiting for you, so hang in there,” Narumi said. “You’ll see her soon, don’t you worry. I’m gonna get you to Konoha, so save your strength.” 

“T-tell mom . . .” 

Narumi listened, but Isamu said nothing else, and after a few minutes Narumi assumed he had lapsed back into unconsciousness. He put on an extra burst of speed and didn’t slow down until the gates of the village were in sight. 

The guards waved him through after a quick check of his identification, leaving Narumi free to make his way to the hospital. The moment he walked through the doors, Isamu was whisked away by a medic and the storage scrolls were taken by another medic so the bodies could be processed. 

Unwilling to leave until he knew more, Narumi settled down in the waiting room.

Eventually, Tsunade emerged from the depths of the hospital, leveling an unimpressed look at him. “I thought you’d be here. The Uchiha kid is fine. Eyeballs back in his head and everything. It might take him a while to get the sight back.” 

Narumi leapt up from his seat. “He’s fine?” 

Tsunade set her hands on her hips. “He’s fine, so settle down. He’s asleep and resting, and his mother is on her way, so there’s no need for you to take up space in my hospital anymore. Go home and take a shower.” 

“I was gonna visit Kakashi.” 

“Trust me. Take a shower first,” Tsunade said. 

Looking down at his blood-stained shirt, Narumi had to admit she had a point. Tsubame’s apartment was a bit out of his way, but he made his way there was quickly as possible to bathe and change before heading to the Senju compound. 

He found Dan in the garden, watching over three small children, one with dark hair, one with blond, and one with grey. 

“Narumi,” he greeted warmly. “Good to see you.” 

“There’s one more than normal,” Narumi said, squinting at the kids running around with toy shuriken and kunai. 

“My niece, Shizune,” Dan said. “My sister’s daughter. She’s three.” 

The kids had taken notice of the new arrival. Kogane and Shizune quickly dismissed him and went back to throwing their toy weapons, but Kakashi stared at him solemnly from behind his oversized scarf. 

Narumi grinned and waved him over. “Hey there, Kakashi, remember me?” 

Kakashi ran over, but shook his head. 

“That’s okay,” Narumi said. “I brought something fun for you.” 

“This is Narumi-ji-san, your parents’ friend,” Dan said as Narumi hunted through his pockets. 

“Aha!” Narumi held a seal aloft. “Here, hold this and channel chakra through it. Wait, do you know what—” 

Kakashi grabbed the seal with both hands and glared down at it. After a few minutes, brightly colored sparks erupted from the seal, spiralling and pinwheeling through the sky. Harmless, but colorful and fun. 

Narumi laughed at Kakashi’s wide eyes and reached into his pocket for more seals. Went he went to hand over the seals, however, Kakashi’s eyes were no longer looking at him but behind him. 

Narumi turned and saw Sakumo standing on the path leading to the garden. “Hey, Sakumo!” Narumi called, waving him over. 

Sakumo stumbled forwards. 

Dan stood. “Ah. I think I should take the children inside. Kogane! Shizune! Time for lunch. You too, Kakashi.” 

Sakumo was limping, Narumi realized as Kogane and Shizune ran past him. Kakashi didn’t move from his side. 

Dan looked inside, after the other two, and then back at Kakashi. “Come on, Kakashi.” 

“It’s okay. Go look after the other two,” Narumi said. 

Sakumo’s shirt was stained with blood, not yet dried, and Narumi had a feeling that something was terribly wrong. 

“Dad?” Kakashi said as Sakumo approached them, his eyes fixed on Kakashi and nothing else. 

Sakumo sank to his knees in front of Kakashi. Trembling, his hands reached out to gently hold Kakashi’s shoulders. Kakashi stared at his father, and then at Narumi, confusion clear in his eyes. 

Narumi had a sinking feeling he knew what team had set off the distress seal. 

Kakashi tentatively patted his father’s head, as if unsure what protocol to follow now that their regular post-mission routine had been disrupted. “Welcome home, Dad.” 

Sakumo blinked, as if seeing Kakashi for the first time. “Ah. I’m home . . . Kakashi.” 

Sakumo’s face crumpled. Tears welled up in his eyes. He clutched Kakashi desperately close, as if never intending to let him go, and sobbed. 


	10. Chapter 10

Narumi didn’t go on another mission with Sakumo for two years. After Kaede’s death, Sakumo was put on leave for to take care of Kakashi until he entered the Academy and was, at least in the eyes of the village, able to take care of himself. The Academy entrance age had been shifting earlier again, and so Kakashi entered at only four years old, the youngest in his class but not by much. 

With Kakashi in school most of the day and supposedly able to fend for himself the rest of the time, Sakumo was again placed into active duty, and again put on a team with Narumi. 

He looked a little older, a little more tired when Narumi saw him, but he was smiling again as they met at the gates of Konoha. “It’s been a while,” Sakumo greeted. 

“Since Kushina’s chuunin exam,” Narumi agreed. 

After her death, Kaede’s team hadn’t been given to another jounin since the chuunin exams were mere days away. Shikanao Nara hadn’t participated due to severe injuries, but Kushina and Mikoto had rounded up a lone genin for the exams and passed. They’d gone on to form a squad with Minato and his teammates, lead by Minato, who had passed his jounin exam shortly after Kushina had become a chuunin. Kushina, not to be outdone, had quickly done the same, and Mikoto looked to be following them both. 

He’d stayed in Konoha, partly for the exams, and partly to help look after Kakashi while Sakumo mourned. Tsubame had given him three months, in the end, until he’d been forced to recall Narumi for an urgent mission. 

It had been mission after mission since then, with little to no breaks in between. Nothing much had changed in that respect, except that now he was going on them with Sakumo. And Narumi had to admit, as friendly as the other Uzumaki were, he particularly enjoyed going on missions with Sakumo. 

“If you were starving and you had to pick between a lizard and a scorpion, what would you eat?” 

Narumi stared up at the sky. “The lizard, I guess. Scorpions are poisonous, right?” 

“It’s a poisonous lizard,” Sakumo said, as he stared glumly at his ration bar. “Can we just keep running to Konoha? I’m sick of ration bars.” 

“You literally passed out from exhaustion,” Narumi said. 

Sakumo grinned and nudged him with his foot. “Yeah, but I’ve got a wonderful, kind partner who carried me to safety.” 

“Eat your ration bar or I’ll cram it into your mouth myself. And I’d still take the lizard. I mean, if they’re both poisonous, I’d rather eat something that doesn’t have a stinger,” Narumi said. 

“Orochimaru chose the scorpion.” 

“He would.” 

Sakumo took a deep breath, pinched his nose, and wolfed down the rest of the ration bar. “There!” he declared triumphantly. “Now we can keep going.” 

“Don’t you have to digest that or whatever?” Narumi said. 

“What, you think I know anything about the human body? Do I look like a medic to you?” Narumi snorted, and Sakumo grinned and elbowed him playfully. “C’mon, if we hurry you might get in some time with Kakashi. He’s been training like a demon lately. He says he’s going to graduate in one year, and I believe him.” 

Together, they took off into the woods, running back to Konoha. “He’s in the same class as Kogane, right?” 

“That’s right. They still train together sometimes, but Kogane’s actually made some other friends,” Sakumo said. “A girl from the orphanage and an Uchiha boy. I tried to get Kakashi to play with them, but he and the Uchiha kid have some kind of rivalry going on. He gets along with Dai’s kid pretty well at least.” 

Sakumo sighed. “He’s too used to spending time with adults and kids like him, who take to shinobi training like ducks to water. He doesn’t understand people who struggle learning things that he’s always found easy, and that the adults around him do with a second thought.” 

“He’ll grow out of it as he meets more people,” Narumi said. “Besides, he’s got you to help him understand.” 

“As much as I can, at least. I was always like him, shinobi training just came to me easily. Kaede would be better at helping him understand. Her parents didn’t so much train her as toss her and a bunch of other Inuzuka kids together and wait to see who came out on top,” Sakumo chuckled. 

“It was totally Kaede,” Narumi said. 

“Yeah, it was Kaede. She always enjoyed beating up her relatives,” Sakumo said. “And she always had to work for it. Did you know she was clumsy as a kid? She was always growing. Taijutsu was always a struggle for her because her body was always changing, so as soon as she’d gotten it down she’d be thrown off balance again. So, of course, taijutsu was what she decided to master. I think Kakashi gets his stubbornness from her.” 

“Oh, like you aren’t plenty stubborn, Mr. Run Until I Pass Out.” 

“Guilty as charged.” 

“So, what else has been going on? You seen Minato and Kushina lately?” 

They talked all the way to the gates of Konoha, at which point they slowed down and prepared to show their identification and mission scroll. A passing jounin, however, raced up and grabbed Sakumo by the arm. 

“Hatake! In the nick of time,” he said. “Get to the Hokage’s office, quickly!” 

Sakumo exchanged a brief, startled look with Narumi before he was dragged off. Narumi, left behind, held out his identification to the chuunin on guard. They examined it more closely than usual, squinting over each and every line. 

“What’s going on?” he asked. 

They exchanged glances. “Can’t tell you,” one of them said, eventually. “Strictly Konoha business.” 

Narumi shrugged and pasted a grin on his face. “Fair enough. ‘Scuse me, I’d better get this to the mission desk.” 

As tempting as it was to follow Sakumo and listen in on his meeting, Narumi wasn’t that stupid—the ANBU would catch him in a heartbeat, and then he’d be thrown in T&I and Tsubame would have a hell of a time getting him out. Instead, he waited by the administration building for Sakumo to come out. 

When he did, it was with a Hyuuga, an Uchiha, a Nara, and a Yamanaka, each of them wearing serious expressions. Sakumo paused briefly by Narumi, waving the rest of the team on. 

“Sorry, looks like an urgent mission came up,” Sakumo said. “Konoha shinobi only.” 

Narumi slapped him on the back. “Go get ‘em. I’ll see you for our next mission.” 

Sakumo waved and jogged after his teammates, the seal Narumi had just placed on his back quickly vanishing into nothing. Narumi took a deep breath and followed Sakumo towards the gates of the village at a much more sedate pace. 

Hopefully, it wouldn’t be necessary, but he had a feeling that this was the moment he had been waiting for. 

With the seal, Narumi was able to track Sakumo, keeping far enough away that his teammates wouldn’t notice Narumi’s presence but close enough that he would be able to reach them without too much delay if something did happen. 

Narumi hated waiting, but that was all he could do right now, checking the seal again and again in case something had happened. 

At first, the seal moved forward steadily, occasionally adjusting trajectory but always moving forward quickly enough that Sakumo must have been running without stopping. Then, all at once, the seal stopped. Narumi waited, heart pounding in his chest, but the seal didn’t move again. 

“Shit.” 

Narumi took off—maybe something had happened, maybe Sakumo was just taking a break; maybe the Hyuuga and Uchiha would see him, maybe they wouldn’t. If Narumi waited too long and missed his chance, he’d never forgive himself. 

The seal started to move again, much more slowly than before, and Narumi put on an extra burst of speed. 

When he reached the seal’s position, at first he didn’t see anything. He looked around wildly, spinning in place as if that would help him find Sakumo. “Sakumo!” 

A twig snapped. Narumi spun around to face the direction the noise had come from, and found himself looking at Ran, her mouth closed around Sakumo’s jounin vest, hauling Sakumo along the ground. She opened her mouth, depositing him on the ground, and sat back on her haunches. 

Narumi breathed out a sigh of relief. “Thanks, Ran,” he said, as he knelt down to assess Sakumo’s injuries and handle anything that he could take care of with the medic kit. Sakumo, thankfully, didn’t seem to be too badly off beyond a few cuts and bruises. “What happened?” 

“We were tracking an enemy, but were suddenly ambushed from underground,” Ran said. “Sakumo was knocked out with a genjutsu. He wouldn’t wake up when I bit him. He was in danger of being killed, so I pulled him away from the battle. His teammates were still fighting when I left, but I haven’t heard them since.” 

“A genjutsu,” Narumi said. At least it wasn’t a head injury; he had no idea how to take care of those, but a genjutsu was pretty simple. Narumi brought his hands together and let out a burst of chakra, disrupting Sakumo’s chakra flow and dispelling the genjutsu. 

Sakumo shot up, his hand flying to his tanto. He looked around wildly until his eyes landed on Narumi. “Narumi? What are you doing here? Wait, never mind that. I have to find my team.” 

Ran stood and padded further on. “I left them fighting this way.” 

The battleground, marked by the cracked ground, was empty when they arrived. Sakumo crouched and examined the area as Ran sniffed around. “Someone fell here, and here,” he noted. “Not a lot of blood, so they were knocked out but not too injured. They were rolled over, and then picked up by someone else. The tracks lead . . . that way.” 

“I found the man we were tracking,” Ran said, at the opposite end of the clearing. “He went this way.” 

Sakumo looked in the direction he had pointed, and then in the opposite direction, which ran had indicated. “Damn! They split up.” 

He dropped into a crouch, head in his hands. Narumi leaned against a tree and waited for him to finish thinking. 

“Ran, track my team. Forget the mission,” he said, at last. “I have to get them back.” 

Narumi breathed out. This was it, then. The moment Sakumo abandoned his mission for the sake of his team. “I’ll go after your team,” he said. “Finish the mission.” 

Sakumo’s head shot up. “Narumi, I can’t ask you to. I was responsible for leading this mission, I should have been able to tell that there was an ambush. I have to bring them back myself.” 

Narumi put a hand on his shoulder. “Do you trust me?” 

Sakumo breathed in, and then out. “Yeah. I trust you.” 

Narumi smacked him upside the head. “Then let me go rescue your teammates, dumbass! I can handle some lame-ass ninja who have to rely on a stupid ambush to win a fight.” 

“Actually, I’d say it was a very smart tactical decision,” Sakumo said. 

“Doesn’t make it any less lame! Now get going,” Narumi said, pushing him towards Ran. “I’ll find your teammates and bring them home safe.” 

Sakumo bit down on his thumb and, with a puff of smoke, summoned Gin and Jun. “Take them with you. I’ll see you in Konoha.” 

“Yeah, see you.” 

Sakumo took off with Ran while Narumi waited for Gin and Jun to catch the scent of Sakumo’s teammates. Soon, they were off again, racing towards the enemy shinobi. 

Jun snorted as they reached a river. “Hah! What kind of mediocre trackers do they think we are? We aren’t ninken. Some measly river isn’t going to throw us off.” 

Gin growled in response and leapt over the river. Jun yipped and followed, and then the two of them were off again. Narumi followed them to a cave. 

“What’s the plan?” Jun asked, as Gin silently stared at the cave. “Want us to get a look?” 

“Sure,” Narumi said. 

Gin shimmered and vanished, the only sign of his movements the slight indentation of the ground beneath his paws. Narumi waited with Jun, lying down in the shrubbery to avoid being seen, until Gin returned. 

“Eight enemy shinobi,” he said. “Two injured. Two lookouts.” 

“And one knows genjutsu, and one knows earth jutsu,” Narumi said. He cracked his knuckles. “Well, I dunno about you two, but I could go for a good, old-fashioned beatdown.” 

The two gave him wolfy grins. 

Gin and Jun went ahead to take care of the two lookouts watching the entrance, leaving Narumi free to approach the cave. “Two down,” Narumi said, as he slapped knock-out seals on them to keep them out of the game. 

The cave was large, but only had one area. All six of the other shinobi were there, gathered around the four Konoha ninja. Narumi readied his anti-earth seals, brought his hands together, and summoned his clones.

The six enemy shinobi whirled around and came face to face with so many clones that the entrance to the cave wasn’t even visible. 

“Shit! The Uzumaki!” one of them yelped. 

The clones surged forward. Most of them were dispelled quickly, but the chaos gave Narumi the ability to slip deeper into the cave and apply his seals, so that at least they would have trouble bringing the cave down on top of them. 

One of the clones crowed in triumph. “Got you, you genjutsu asshole!” 

Narumi rolled under the legs of a massive shinobi bearing an equally massive sword, coming to a stop beside the four captured shinobi. A burst of chakra was enough to wake up the Hyuuga and the Nara, who tried to jump up but were stopped by the bonds around their wrists and ankles. A clone took Narumi’s place to cut them free, as Narumi engaged the shinobi with the sword. 

The shinobi froze in the middle of his fight, allowing Narumi an opening to slap a knock-out seal to him. The Nara continued on; the Hyuuga, too, was fighting another shinobi. Between the three of them, along with the two wolves and the multitudes of clones, they made short work of the remaining shinobi. 

As the fight died down, the clones dispersed, and the Nara set about freeing and examining the Yamanaka and the Uchiha. 

“Straight for our medic,” he sighed as he examined the Yamanaka’s bleeding head wound. 

The Hyuuga approached Narumi and nodded stiffly. “Uzumaki-san. Thank you for your assistance.” 

“It’s no problem,” Narumi said. “I just happened to be in the area and came across Sakumo.” 

The Hyuuga stiffened. “Hatake? Where is he?” 

“He went after the guy you were tracking,” Narumi said. 

The Hyuuga relaxed. “I see. That is good news. We should join him.” 

Narumi looked down at the still-unconscious Uchiha and Yamanaka. The Nara had freed them, but hadn’t had any luck waking them up. “I think you should get them to the hospital.” 

“Three people are unnecessary to carry two,” the Hyuuga said. “As the second in command of this squad, I will join Hatake. Nara, you will take these two to Konoha. Uzumaki, you will join him—unless you have another mission, in which case, I am certain Nara can take them alone.” 

“You sure have faith in me,” the Nara groaned. “Please don’t.” 

“Nah, no mission at the moment,” Narumi said. “I’ll help them get to Konoha. Gin, Jun, you mind helping him get to Sakumo?” 

“Ugh, Hyuuga,” Jun said. “Hurry up, Gin. The faster we find Sakumo, the faster we get rid of the Hyuuga.” 

The two wolves left, and the Hyuuga followed after them. Narumi and Nara took the Uchiha and the Yamanka on their backs and took off for the village, slightly slower than normal due to their burdens. 

Nara glanced at him as they made their way to Konoha, sticking to the ground rather than the trees. “You’re Narumi Namikaze of the Uzumaki, aren’t you?” 

“Is that what they’re calling me? Jeez, what a long name,” Narumi said. “But yeah, that’s me.” 

Nara nodded. “My younger sister was on your cousin’s team. Shikanao.” 

“Whoa, really?” Narumi said. “Uh, I was sorry about what happened to her. How’s she doing?” 

“She’s not on active duty any more, but she joined the cryptology department,” Nara said, shrugging one shoulder. “She wanted to join that department anyways.” 

“At least there’s that,” Narumi said. “What’s your name, anyways?” 

“Shikanosuke. Nara’s fine. So, you really just happened to be in the area?” Narumi shrugged. Nara eyed him. “You shouldn’t follow people on top secret missions.” 

“What were you doing, anyways? It seemed pretty urgent,” Narumi said. 

“Can’t say,” Nara said. “Top secret. Hyuuga’d be pissed if I told, Uchiha too. All the clans, really. Even the Nara would be upset.” 

“Takes a lot to upset a Nara,” Narumi said. 

Nara shrugged. “I’m sure the Uzumaki get upset about things, and they have a reputation as being pretty easy-going.” 

“Yeah, I guess so. Usually things that threaten family or the village are the quickest way to rile them up,” Narumi said. 

Nara nodded. “Then we understand each other. Even the Uzumaki wouldn’t take kindly to,  _ hypothetically speaking _ , someone sneaking around to make blueprints of clan compounds and village defenses and sell them off to the highest bidder.” 

Narumi whistled. He could just imagine the fury on Tsubame’s face if someone spilled the secrets of the barrier seals to Kiri or something like that. “Yeah, that would piss them off. Hypothetically speaking.” 

Nara nodded. “Then you understand the importance of our mission. Let’s hurry and get to Konoha. Yamanaka’s getting heavier by the second.” 

When they finally reached Konoha, they delivered Uchiha and Yamanaka to the hospital before splitting up. Nara went to the Hokage’s office to make a report, and Narumi, although he knew he should leave and head back to Uzushio to report in as well, couldn’t resist stopping by Sakumo’s house and waiting for him to return. 

By the time the door opened, Narumi had gotten bored of waiting and had taken over the kitchen to make himself a late lunch. “I’m home,” Sakumo called. 

“Welcome home!” Narumi called. 

“Narumi? What are you doing here?” Sakumo peered into the kitchen. “Is that food? I could eat a horse.” 

“No horses here, just curry,” Narumi said, waving the empty box of curry roux in the air. “It’s almost ready, go sit down. You’re out of carrots by the way.” 

“Ugh. I’ll go shopping later,” Sakumo groaned as he flopped into a chair. “I’m exhausted.” 

Narumi pulled out two plates and heaped them high with rice and curry. “How was the mission?” 

“Successful, in the end,” Sakumo sighed. “Hyuuga told me you got them all out of the caves. Thanks for that. I kept wishing that I had gone with you.” 

Narumi set the plates on the table and took a seat across from Sakumo. “I’m glad you didn’t. Seems like it was pretty important.” 

Sakumo shivered. “Yeah, I thought Hyuuga was gonna kill me when I said I almost gave up on the mission to rescue them. Not that I blame him, I guess. Being a Branch House member of the Hyuuga clan isn’t easy.” 

Narumi scowled at the reminder. “That’s an understatement.” 

The door opened again. “I’m home!” Kakashi called. 

“Welcome home,” Narumi and Sakumo chorused. 

“Curry on the stove if you’re hungry,” Sakumo added. 

“I’m going to train with Kogane,” Kakashi said. “Bye!” 

Sakumo laughed and shook his head as Kakashi ran to his room and ran out again with his gear. “Always training,” he said. “Seems like only yesterday he was so small I could almost hold him in one hand. Soon he’s going to be a genin and have a team of his own. I wonder who his teammates will be?” 

Narumi grinned to himself. “We’ll have to wait and see, I guess.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter than usual today! Next we have a time-skip, so this felt like the best place to end the chapter. Thanks for reading! I love all of your comments.


	11. Chapter 11

Kakashi rose bright and early, before the sun was even up, on the morning of his first mission as a jounin. He ruthlessly squashed the butterflies in his stomach as he ran through the mission parameters in his head—Minato-sensei had gone over them with him the night before, so they were fresh in his mind, but he wanted to make sure he remembered everything. He wanted this mission to be perfect. 

His father was still gone, off on a mission of his own, so Kakashi made himself a quick, but healthy and filling breakfast before grabbing his things and heading out to the training ground where he would meet with his team. 

Minato-sensei was the only one there, and he beamed at Kakashi and gave him a cheerful wave. “Kakashi! Bright and early as always.” 

“Good morning, sensei,” Kakashi said, only to find himself suddenly face to face with a brightly colored package.

“Congratulations on making jounin!” Minato said. “Go on, open it up.” 

Kakashi quickly unwrapped it and opened the box. “A . . . kunai?” he said, lifting it out of the box and running a finger over the three tips, careful not to prick his fingers. 

“A hiraishin kunai,” Minato said. “For emergencies.” 

Kakashi flipped it around and examined the seal. He didn’t know much about seals, just little bits his dad had picked up from friends in Uzushio and then passed on to him, so he couldn’t do much more than pick out fragmented bits and pieces of the seal. “Thank you, sensei,” he said. 

“It’s not much,” Minato said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. “Kushina wanted me to get you ‘something awesome.’” 

Kakashi smiled behind his mask. “That does sound like Kushina.” 

Both of them turned at the sound of running footsteps. “Sorry, I’m not late, am I?” Rin asked anxiously as she came to a halt beside them. 

“Not at all. You’re right on time, as always. Kakashi and I were just early,” Minato assured her.

“Oh, um. Good.” Rin thrust out a small package towards Kakashi. Her cheeks were slightly pink—Kakashi hoped she wasn’t coming down with something. That was the last thing he needed on his first mission. “Congratulations Kakashi! It’s a first aid kit,” she continued as he opened it to reveal a pouch. “I put it together myself. I thought it would be good.” 

“Thank you, Rin,” he said, as he fastened the pouch to his belt. 

He looked up to find Rin staring at him. “You’re welcome,” she said quickly. “Um, where’s Obito?” 

“I’m sure he’ll be here soon,” Minato said, in a tone that Kakashi thought was much too hopeful considering who they were discussing.

Sure enough, the three of them were waiting for another half an hour before Obito ran up, waving wildly. “Hey!” he called out. “Sorry I’m late, I was helping an old lady with her groceries, and then she kept talking about her grandkids!”

An odd, squirming feeling settled in his stomach at the sight of Obito and his stupid grin. Kakashi hoped he wasn’t catching whatever Rin had. “Liar,” he huffed. 

“Am not!” Obito protested. 

Minato spoke up, likely in an attempt to stop any arguments before they began. “We were just giving Kakashi his congratulations presents!” he said. 

“Oh,” Obito said, and looked at Kakashi with that stupid, stupid grin. He rubbed at his nose sheepishly. “Uh, I got kind of busy with that old lady and I sorta . . . forgot.”

The weird, queasy feeling was only getting worse. “Whatever,” Kakashi said, to cover up whatever was wrong with him. “It would’ve been useless anyways.” 

Obito puffed up irritably. “Would not, Bakashi! My gift was going to be amazing!” 

“What were you going to get me, then?” Kakashi shot back.

Obito faltered. “Uh.” 

A hand landed on Kakashi’s head. He spun around, grabbing a kunai and aiming for the attacker’s arteries, only for a familiar white blade to knock his kunai away. Kakashi grinned and exchanged a series of blows with his attacker, culminating in the familiar sound of his father’s laughter as he protested, “Alright, alright, Kakashi! Give your old man a break, he just got back from a mission!” 

Kakashi looked up at his father, who beamed down at him and ruffled his hair. “I thought you weren’t supposed to be back for another two days,” he said. 

“We rushed a bit,” Sakumo said. “I wasn’t about to miss my son’s first mission as a jounin. Besides, someone else wanted to see you.” 

“Someone else?” Kakashi asked, only to whirl around as Minato made what could only be qualified as a squawk. 

A strange blond man with odd marks on his cheeks was assaulting Minato as Rin and Obito gaped uselessly. Kakashi stepped forwards, only for his father to stop him with a hand on his shoulder. He paused, glanced up at his father, and then refocused on the stranger who had an arm around Minato’s neck and was . . . ruffling his hair?” 

“Cry ‘uncle!’” the stranger yelled. 

“Uncle! Uncle!” Minato yelped. The stranger laughed and released Minato, easily dodging his punch—although Minato didn’t look like he was trying very hard to punch him, Kakashi noted. 

“Honestly, nii-san,” Minato huffed. “Do you really have to treat me like this in front of my students?” 

“Of course!” the stranger said cheerfully. “It’s good for them to see their sensei get a good ol’ dose of humility.” 

“Hold on, ‘nii-san?’” Obito exclaimed, for once asking a good question. 

“Ah, that’s right,” Minato said, turning to face them. The stranger did as well, and Kakashi was immediately struck by his blue eyes, so similar to Minato’s. “You haven’t met, have you? Nii-san, these are my students, Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara. You already know Kakashi, of course. Obito, RIn, Kakashi, this is my older brother, Narumi Uzumaki.” 

“Are you related to Kushina?” Obito asked. “And how come you didn’t tell us you had a brother, sensei?” 

Sakumo bent down and murmured in Kakashi’s ear, “Narumi is your godfather, Kakashi. You probably don’t remember, but you saw him a few times when you were very young.” 

Kakashi thought back carefully, only to come up blank. He shook his head. “My godfather?” he asked quietly, trusting that all the noise Obito was making would mask their conversation. 

“That’s right,” Sakumo said. “He’s been very eager to see you again, but they’ve kept him busy in Uzushio.” 

Now that Kakashi looked, he could clearly see that the man’s headband sported the spiral of Uzushio, not the leaf of Konoha. “If he’s not from Konoha, why did you make him my godfather?” 

“Think of the alternatives,” his father said wryly. Kakashi shuddered at the thought. He’d met his father’s friends, and he wouldn’t want to end up stuck with any of them. He respected Orochimaru’s genius, and he was undeniably a good shinobi, but he didn’t exactly come across as the godfather type. And Jiraiya, who had once taken Kakashi to a hot spring to use him as bait and then left Kakashi there when a bunch of women had chased him out, would probably be even worse. 

“That reminds me,” Sakumo said. “I have something for you, Kakashi.” 

Sakumo held out a simple tanto, about as long as Kakashi’s forearm, with a plain, circular guard. The sheath, too, was remarkably plain, but Kakashi’s breath caught in his breath as he looked at it. 

He looked into Sakumo’s eyes. “Father,” he said. “But this is your . . .” 

“The White Light Chakra Sabre,” Sakumo said. “It was mine, and now it’s yours. Once you get back, I’ll teach you more about how to use it—although I don’t doubt you’ll probably have it all figured out by then.” 

Kakashi reached out to accept it and unsheathed the tanto just enough to reveal a strip of gleaming white metal. “Thank you, Father. I’ll make you proud.” 

Sakumo, beaming, ruffled Kakashi’s hair, and, while he was still trying to fend off that attack, swooped in to press a kiss to his forehead, even though he couldn’t feel it through the forehead protector. It still made him squirm, and he couldn’t help but glance to the side to make sure Obito hadn’t seen him get treated like a little kid—he didn’t need Obito teasing him when they were supposed to be focused on the mission. It would be unprofessional. 

“I’m already proud, Kakashi,” Sakumo said. “Keep yourself on your mission, and remember . . .” 

“Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash,” Kakashi said with him. “I remember, Father. I won’t let you down.” 

“You? Let me down? Not possible,” Sakumo said, and wrapped an arm around Kakashi’s shoulders. “Now come over here and greet your godfather.” 

Narumi gave him a broad, cheerful smile as they approached. Kakashi couldn’t help but compare it to the same expression he saw so often on his father’s face, and found himself relaxing even though he knew it was a good idea to stay on guard against strangers. “Jounin already, huh?” he said. “Looks to me like you need one of these.” 

He held out a small, black book, which Kakashi accepted. “A bingo book? I already have one,” he said—he’d started an unofficial one of his own as a chuunin, focused more on the abilities of opponents he had heard of or come across rather than the bounties on their heads, and once he’d reached jounin he’d been presented with an official one. 

Narumi grinned and tapped the side of his nose. “Not this one. What you’ve got there is a super rare Uzushio-style bingo book. Trust me, it’s got all kinds of juicy info you won’t find in the standard Konoha edition.” 

“Narumi,” Sakumo said, sounding amused. “Should you really be giving that away?” 

Narumi grinned and rubbed the back of his neck. “Eh, I’ll just tell Tsubame it got destroyed during battle. Coming from me, he’ll believe it.” 

Kakashi looked up from the book sharply. “Are you going to get in trouble for giving this to me?” 

Narumi winked at him. “Only if we get caught. So you should keep that a secret, ya know?” 

Kakashi nodded, and slipped it into a pouch, where it wouldn’t get lost or ruined. “I promise.” 

“Great! Now, it’s kinda lame to get a present you can’t even brag about, so I got you this too.” Narumi held out a scroll, which Kakashi opened and examined with some interested. “It’s a sealing scroll, and works like you’d expect, except it also preserves food and stuff. Keeps things from rotting. So you can eat something fresh on long mission if you end up somewhere the hunting isn’t good, or you can store a body without worrying about it decomposing. I put some takeout in one once, and it was still good a month later! Still warm, even.” 

“ANBU have started using them to throw off estimates about time of death,” Sakumo said. “Store a body for hours or even days, then take it out again looking like it only just died.” 

Kakashi resolved to take a closer look at the scroll later to see if he could replicate it—maybe Kushina or Minato could help him. “Thank you, Narumi-san. I’ll use it well.” He glanced over at the rest of his team; Obito was still lobbing question after question at Minato, and Rin was eagerly listening in to the answers. “I should be going now,” he said. 

“Come home safe,” Sakumo said, ruffling Kakashi’s hair. 

Kakashi nodded and, with a quick glance to make sure Obito wasn’t looking, darted forward to give him a hug. “Will you still be here when I get back?” he asked. 

“I’ll do my best,” his father promised. “We’ll go out for dinner to celebrate your first mission as a jounin.” 

Kakashi smiled at the thought—it had been too long since they’d been able to sit down for dinner together, much less go out to eat. Sakumo was busy most of the times on missions, as was Kakashi. “Will you be here too, Narumi-san?” he asked. 

“Probably,” Narumi said. “We’re between missions right now, and hopefully it’ll stay that way for awhile.” He knocked his shoulder into Sakumo’s. “Now come on, I think I was promised a bowl of Ichiraku ramen.” 

“Only one!” Sakumo declared. “I know how much ramen you can eat, you’re worse than Kushina—!” 

Kakashi left them bickering and rejoined his team. “Ready?” Minato asked. 

Kakashi nodded. “Let’s go.” 

He went over the map in his head as they ran towards the Kusa-Iwa border and reviewed what his father had told him of fighting Iwa shinobi. Ideally, they wouldn’t be doing any fighting—they were meant to sneak in, destroy the bridge, and sneak out. Kakashi knew enough about leading missions to know that nothing ever went according to plan, however, and stayed on high alert as they crossed the border into Kusa, towards Kannabi bridge. 

He sensed the man not long after they reach a forest full of strange, massive mushrooms. Kakashi wasn’t much of a sensor, but he was decent enough to tell when he was being watched when the watcher wasn’t making much of an effort to hide his presence. “Sensei,” he murmured, motioning towards the man. Minato nodded, and Kakashi signalled to them to hide in a nearby ditch, just large enough that the man wouldn’t notice them. Just to be safe, he readied one of the earth jutsu-nullifying seals, pressing it into the ground and keeping one hand on it so he could activate it at a moment’s notice. 

“There are a lot of them,” he said. “At least twenty. Clones?” 

“Quite likely,” Minato agreed. “What’s your plan, Kakashi?” 

Kakashi turned it over for a moment. Rin, he knew, was best away from the front lines—as their medic, she was easily the most valuable member of the team. Minato was incredibly fast, and could probably take out half of them before they even realized what was happening. Kakashi wasn’t at that level, at least not yet, but he felt he could take out at least a quarter of them on his own, easily. That left the remaining quarter to Obito and Rin, and although Obito struggled as a ninja, Kakashi had faith that he would protect Rin. 

“Sensei, you and I go in together, take out as many as possible before they can retaliate,” he said. “Rin, Obito, you watch our backs. If any of them try to get the drop on us, take them out.” 

Obito scowled, likely at being left behind, but nodded when Rin did. Minato pulled out a hiraishin kunai and nodded once, sharply, before vanishing in a swirl of leaves. 

Kakashi pulled out his father’s tanto and leapt into the fray, taking down a clone as two Minato took down three more nearly simultaneously. A shuriken shot past his face, hitting an incoming clone in the eye and dispelling it as he stabbed another in the gut. 

One. Two. Three. 

Another barrage of shuriken, from Rin or Obito, a brief puff of flame that distracted a clone long enough for Kakashi to take him out. A brief shout from Rin, but he couldn’t look to see if she was safe because another two clones were bearing down on him, swords drawn. Kakashi dove down and sliced upwards with his tanto as he slid between a clone’s legs. He rolled, a sword falling where he had been moments before, and threw his tanto. It struck true, landing right in the center of the clone’s forehead, and Kakashi darted forward to snatch it out of the air as the clone dispelled. 

He paused, breathing heavily, and stared around the forest. A single shinobi lay at Minato’s feet. 

“Do you think he has teammates nearby?” he asked. 

Minato nodded. “Most likely. Stay alert. I have to leave you here, but I’ll finish my mission as quickly as possible. I know I don’t have to tell you this but . . . remember. The most important thing to a ninja is teamwork. Trust in your team, Kakashi.” 

He nodded. “I will, sensei.” 

Minato left after a few quiet words to Rin and Obito—all too soon, in Kakashi’s opinion. He knew he could lead this team, and he knew Rin trusted him to lead; the question was whether Obito would follow him or not. 

The two of them approached him silently, Rin’s eyes scanning him quickly for any injuries. Obito glanced away, then looked back to meet his eyes. “Well? You got any new orders . . .  _ leader _ ?” 

Kakashi’s stomach felt strange again—he really hoped he wasn’t coming down with anything. He should have checked the medical kit Rin gave him to see if she had included any medicine. He nodded tersely, keeping his face blank to hide the queasy feeling. “Let’s go.” 

They ran through Kusa, occasionally taking breaks to briefly rest when one of them grew too tired to go on. Part of him felt impatient, waiting for them to recover when he knew he could keep going, but he only had to look at his father’s tanto to remind himself. 

_ Those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash.  _

Part of being a good leader was knowing the limits of those under one’s command. Pushing them too hard would weaken them, which would endanger them all in a fight. Going ahead and leaving them behind would be worse; there was no telling what they might encounter this close to enemy territory. He busied himself by running through potential strategies. 

Rin was primarily a medic, the weakest at fighting of the three of them. It would be best to keep her in the middle, with Kakashi taking point and Obito in the rear. Obito was clumsy at times, but good with shuriken and his fire jutsu. From the rear, Obito could launch distance attacks and cover Kakashi, who was the best at hand-to-hand combat. 

They made it a fair distance before getting attacked again; they had long since left the mushroom forest behind for bamboo. They were midway across a small lake when Kakashi sensed chakra. He raised a hand to signal the others just as the bamboo from the forest around them was launched at them. Obito darted forwards, pushing Rin behind him, and blew out flames hot enough that Kakashi could feel them even from a few feet away. The bamboo burned up quickly, and the remaining shards fell harmlessly into the water. 

Their attacker made himself apparent before the last embers had stopped burning—he flew out of the forest, leaping from bamboo stalk to bamboo stalk almost too quickly for Kakashi to make out the motions. Kakashi darted forward to meet him, carefully avoiding the shuriken Obito flung out, and slashed his tanto across the space where the man had been moments before—too slow. He whirled around, caught sight of motion out of the corner of his eye, and dropped to the ground just in time to avoid taking a sword to the neck. 

Rin screamed.

Kakashi whirled around, and cursed as he saw the man he had been fighting appear beside a second man, who was holding Rin under his arm. Two of them—of course there were two. Hadn’t Minato told him they would probably encounter a team?

“We’ll take care of this one,” the man holding Rin said, and then they were gone. 

“Dammit!” Obito yelled, already racing off into the forest without even a single thought about where they might have gone or whether more of them might be waiting in ambush. 

“Wait!” Kakashi said. 

Obito whirled around to glare at him. “What? Are you saying we shouldn’t go after her?” 

“What? Of course not,” Kakashi said. Did Obito really think that poorly of him? A sour feeling settled in his stomach at the thought. “Rin is our comrade, and we’re going to save her.” 

“O-oh.” Obito blinked at him in shock. “I thought you would say we should finish the mission. I mean, failing your first mission as a jounin...” 

“I won’t fail,” Kakashi said. “We’ll save Rin, and then we’ll blow up the bridge. We’ll be behind schedule, but the village can’t complain as long as the job gets done.” 

Obito looked away, towards the place where the two men who had taken Rin had last stood, and sheepishly rubbed at the back of his head. “You know, Kakashi . . . I always thought the White Fang was a true hero.” 

Kakashi almost jerked in surprise—Obito had never even mentioned knowing anything about his father, much less that he admired him. 

“That thing he says, about those who abandon their teammates . . . I thought that was really cool.” Obito grinned at him, then, and the strange fluttery feeling in his stomach returned with a vengeance. “You’re a lot more like him than I thought. So, what’s the plan, leader?” 

The two men had covered their scents, but he could still easily trace the scent of Rin’s shampoo. Kakashi followed their trail, and where his nose failed, Obito’s keen eyes picked up the slack. Before long, they had made their way to a cave, where their enemies awaited them. 

“I’ll enter first,” Kakashi said. “I’ll try to get the drop on one of them, but they’ll most likely be expecting us, so it will end up one-versus-one. Let’s go.” 

“To where?” a voice said, as Obito’s eyes widened and he surged forward, shouting, “Behind you!” 

Kakashi stumbled as Obito’s arm slammed into his stomach. Off-balance, he could only watch in horror as a sword descended towards Obito’s face—at the speed it was going, it would split him open, but Kakashi couldn’t look away—but then, at the last second, Obito dodged to the side and forward, drawing a kunai and slamming it into the man’s chest almost faster than Kakashi could see. The man dropped to his knees, his mouth forming soundless words, and then fell. 

Kakashi sniffed and smelled Obito’s blood, but Obito was still standing. “Obito?” 

Obito turned, and his eyes were as red as the blood trickling down the side of his face. “Jeez, Kakashi, who’s the crybaby now?” he teased. 

Kakashi touched a finger to his eye, and found it came away damp. “Still you,” he said, as a tear trickled down Obito’s face. “Your eyes. . .” 

Obito looked down at his hands. “Yeah, the Sharingan. I can see the flow of chakra, now.” He grinned. “Looks like it’s my turn to protect you this time, Bakashi.” 

Kakashi scoffed. “You’re the stupid one. Are you just going to leave that to get infected? Hurry up and let me treat it, and then we’ll rescue Rin.” 

Obito looked ready to race into the cave at the reminder, but he stood still long enough for Kakashi to quickly disinfect and bandage the long cut down the side of his face. It had missed his eye and his ear, but would probably leave a scar; Kakashi could do field medicine well enough, but he was no medic. 

They double-checked their equipment, prepared themselves for a fight, and walked into the cave together. 

Rin sat on the floor, out of it but unharmed as far as he could tell. “Her chakra flow is irregular,” Obito whispered. 

“They probably put her under a genjutsu to extract information,” Kakashi said. This was good, in more than one way—Rin hadn’t been physically tortured, so if they broke the genjutsu, she would likely join the fight, and it also meant that the enemy didn’t know anything about their abilities, or else they wouldn’t have bothered with the genjutsu. 

The enemy shinobi sighed and shook his head. “Looks like those guys were completely useless. Guess I have to do everything myself,” he said, and drew his sword.

Kakashi drew his tanto and dashed forward as the man ran at them with his sword, Obito at his side. He jumped up as Obito threw himself to the ground, aiming his tanto down at the man. The man dodged, but not without taking a cut to the shoulder from the tanto, and now Kakashi and Obito were between him and Rin. 

Kakashi knelt before her and quickly canceled out the genjutsu. She blinked for a moment, surprised but not distressed—likely not psychological torture, then—and then smiled slightly. “Kakashi? Obito?” 

“We came to save you,” Obito said. 

Kakashi nodded. “We have to go and complete the mission.” With the three of them working together, he had no doubt they could at least incapacitate the enemy shinobi—with some luck, they might even be able to capture him and take him to the village. 

Rin stood. Her legs trembled slightly, but the longer she stood the firmer her stance became. Satisfied that she was fine, Kakashi turned back to face the enemy shinobi. 

The man sneered at them. “Don’t get so cocky, brats,” he said. “You’re still at my mercy.” 

He made a seal, and the cave around them rumbled. 

“Get out!” Kakashi yelled, and the three of them stumbled forwards. The earth surged under his feet, and Kakashi quickly slapped one of the nullifying seals to the ground and activated it. The earth stilled, but the rumbling continued. Kakashi readied another seal and looked for the source of the attack—the walls, perhaps—

A small pebble fell past his nose, and he looked up. Obito, in front of him, ran forward, sparing not a single glance for the rock above him that was beginning to fall. 

Kakashi moved without even thinking about it. 

His hands collided firmly with Obito’s back, slamming the nullification seal onto his back and activating it, just as the ceiling collapsed on top of them. 

Everything hurt, but he managed, somehow, to open his eyes. The relief he felt at the sight of his teammates, dazed but unhurt, was enough to wash away the pain. “Obito . . . Rin . . .” 

Obito blinked, still dazed—Kakashi hoped he hadn’t hit his head; head injuries could be dangerous and he wasn’t sure Rin was cleared to treat them—and then his eyes widened as he scrambled forwards. “Kakashi!” 

Rin’s hands glowed green as she sat beside him. She chewed her lip nervously. 

Normally, Rin’s healing brought a sense of relief, or sometimes, if the injury was particularly bad, of pain. Kakashi didn’t know what it meant that he couldn’t feel anything, but he knew it wasn’t good. “Rin, it’s fine.” 

“Shut up, Bakashi!” Obito said. “Come on, we have to break these boulders somehow. Do you know any earth jutsu?” 

Rin shook her head. “I—I don’t know if we should,” she said. “The way the boulders fell...if we move one of them, we might cause the whole thing to collapse on top of us. They have teams dedicated to learning how to properly use earth jutsu for rescues.” 

“Dammit! There has to be something,” Obito said. “Maybe we can, I don’t know, lift it up enough to drag him out, or something.” 

“Rin,” Kakashi said. “Stop. Save your chakra. I can’t . . . feel anything. You have to save your chakra for the mission. You have to complete it without me.” 

“Like hell! What happened to being teammates? Aren’t you our comrade too, Kakashi? We won’t leave you!” 

Kakashi tried to breath, and coughed blood. “Rin . . . sorry. The medical kit you gave me is probably ruined, but look in my kunai pouch. Take sensei’s kunai—take all of them, you might need them. That man, if he’s out there, you’ll have to kill him and escape before reinforcements arrive. But before you go . . . Obito. Take this.” 

He tried to lift his hand, but only managed to twitch his fingers. Still, it was enough to draw Obito’s attention to the white tanto lying there. “Take it to my father. Tell him that I’m giving it to you—he’ll know what I mean.” 

Tears welled up in Obito’s eyes. “Dammit, Bakashi,” he said. “I was the one supposed to give you a present.” 

“Don’t worry,” Kakashi said. “You can make it up to me later.” 

And he closed his eyes. 

***

They returned to Konoha in silence. None of them felt much like talking. Rin, Obito knew, had liked Kakashi as more than just a teammate—not to mention that she felt guilty for being the weak one, the one that had to be protected. She’d gone off to train every time they stopped on the way back, punching holes in trees long into the night. 

Minato felt guilty too, for his own reasons. He’d come to save them barely in the nick of time. Obito had passed out in the middle of fighting off the reinforcements, and Rin had been left alone, fending them off with only Kakashi’s kunai. He’d been quiet ever since Obito had woken up. Even now, as they approached Konoha, he stared solemnly at the massive gates. 

He turned to them as they walked through. “I have to speak to Kakashi’s father. Rin, Obito, report to the Hokage and then go to the hospital and get checked out. Tell him I’ll give him my report soon.” 

Somehow, Obito managed to nod. Idly, his thumb ran over the hilt of the tanto at his side. He didn’t have the scabbard—Kakashi had always worn it on his back, and it remained buried with him in the cave—so he had tied the tanto to his waist and wrapped the blade in bandages. “Yeah, Sensei,” he said. “We’ll go.” 

Minato put a hand on each of their shoulders and tried to smile. It didn’t reach his eyes. “I’ll speak to you both soon. Get some rest.” 

Minato vanished, and Obito and Rin turned as one to trudge in the direction of the Hokage’s office. It was busy as always, but the moment they presented their mission scroll they were quickly ushered into his office. The usual jounin were gathered there, clustered around maps dotted with little pins, and the Hokage himself sat behind his desk, pensively smoking his pipe.

Obito slammed the mission scroll onto the desk, not caring that the jounin glared at him for his rudeness. “Kannabi Bridge mission was a success.” 

The jounin gathered by the maps burst into action, adjusting pins and muttering to each other. The Hokage looked at them over his steepled fingers. “And Kakashi Hatake?” 

“Dead,” Obito growled, and stormed from the room without waiting to be dismissed. A chuunin waved a mission report form at him, but Obito ignored him. What the hell was he supposed to write?

_ Mission went great, except for the part where our teammate died to save us and now all of us are guilty and not speaking to each other and our team will probably be split up.  _

He could see it now. The Hokage had already been sending Minato on more and more solo missions—hell, he was the only shinobi that had a flee-on-sight order from Iwa. Rin was a great medic, so she would always be in high demand, whether on the field or in the hospital. And Obito—Obito was a weakling who couldn’t even save his comrade from a stupid rock, even after he’d awoken the Sharingan. He’d probably end up shuffled into the police force like the rest of the Uchiha no one cared about. 

It was funny—he’d never realized before that Kakashi had been the glue holding Team Seven together. He’d been too busy seeing him as stuck-up, self-important, cold-hearted . . .

Somehow, Obito found himself at the memorial stone. Several names had been added recently, and soon Kakashi’s would join them. Someone had placed flowers at the base of the memorial. 

He sat down and stayed there for a long, long time. 

The sun had long since set by the time he heard footsteps approach from behind. 

“Rin completed your mission report for you,” Minato said. 

“Oh,” Obito said. “Is she . . .” 

He didn’t know what he wanted to ask. Was she okay? Of course not. Was she at the hospital, or at home, or training? Probably one of those. 

“She’s at home,” Minato said. “I persuaded her to get some rest.” 

“And now it’s my turn?” Obito said. 

Minato said down next to him and didn’t say anything. Obito waited, and waited, and when he finally couldn’t take it anymore, he said. “It’s my fault! It’s my fault that Kakashi—I wasn’t paying enough attention, and he had to push me out of the way. It should’ve been me. Kakashi’s a better ninja than I am—the village actually needs him. It should’ve been me.” 

Obito clenched his fists in his lap and tried to ignore the tears gathering in his eyes. Beside him, Minato stared at the memorial stone and said nothing. 

“I’ve known Kakashi since he was very young,” Minato said, at last. “My brother—Narumi, he’s friends with Kakashi’s father. They fought together in the war when they were around my age. Sakumo understands better than anyone the choices Kakashi had to make on this mission—he doesn’t blame you, Obito. No one blames you.” 

Obito stifled a sob in his sleeve. Minato, thankfully, didn’t draw attention to it, just wrapped an arm around Obito’s shoulders and kept talking. “A few years ago—long before you were on my team—Sakumo was on a mission that went wrong. His mission was critical to the village, but his teammates had been captured. He didn’t have the time to both carry out his mission and rescue his teammates, so he chose to abandon the mission and save his team.” 

“He did?” Obito said.

“He did—until my brother showed up and persuaded Sakumo to leave the rescue to him, so that Sakumo could finish his mission,” Minato chuckled. “Sakumo likes to say my brother has the gods’ own luck. But, what I’m saying is . . . Sakumo knows what it means to be a commander, to be responsible for a team.”

Obito buried his face in his arms. “Stupid Kakashi. He was always . . . always protecting us. Me and Rin. I couldn’t do anything to protect him; I was too weak. I’m tired of being weak.” 

Minato squeezed his shoulder. “And that’s the first step to getting stronger. When the world knocks you down, pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep moving.” With a small smile, he picked up a flower that had been resting at his side and set it on top of the bouquets beneath the memorial. “And of course, it’s always good to take a moment to remember the people who are important to you.” 

***

On the day Kakashi was assigned the Kannabi bridge mission, Narumi was in the hospital in Uzushio, receiving treatment for a concussion, several crushed ribs, and a nearly severed arm. When he woke up from his medically induced sleep, Tsubame was at his bedside, pouring over a stack of documents, as he always was these days.

“What happened?” Narumi asked, already getting out of bed and finding his clothes. 

“Kakashi and his team were assigned the mission to destroy Kannabi bridge,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi inhaled sharply. He knew it was coming, but he’d hoped to be there—hoped to be able to help them however he could. He could hear Tsubame’s next words already, a quiet, regretful,  _ Obito Uchiha didn’t make it.  _

“Kakashi didn’t make it,” Tsubame said. 

Narumi froze. Not Obito—Kakashi. “Kakashi? What happened?”

“He sacrificed himself to save his teammates, as I understand it,” Tsubame said. He handed Narumi a scroll. “I’ve already given you a week’s leave. I’ll write to you if I need you before then. Now go. Sakumo will need someone with him.” 

Narumi pocketed the scroll and gathered up the remainder of his belongings. Tsubame escorted him out of the hospital, but from there they split ways, Tsubame returning to his office, and Narumi heading for edges of the village.

He would go to Konoha eventually, but first he had another stop to make. 

He made his way to Kusa as quickly and quietly as he could, occasionally making use of shadow clones to distract any wandering squads he came across, until he reached the remains of Kannabi Bridge. Narumi didn’t have much talent for tracking, but summoned as many clones as he could and set them to sweeping the forest for any hint of the battle that had taken place there. 

Hours dragged by and finally, finally, a clone dispelled, filling Narumi’s head with the knowledge of a collapsed cave surrounded by the bodies of Iwa shinobi. He dispelled the remaining clones and raced to the cave. The dead Iwa shinobi were still lying there, so he must have beaten Iwa to the scene, but there was no telling when they would come investigate what had happened to the squad. The cave was easy to find, located at the center point of the field of dead bodies. Narumi leapt into the cave, holding up one of the flashlight-seals to light the way. 

Empty. The cave was empty. 

Oh, he had the right cave, that much was for sure. He spotted the tell-tale signs of a jutsu that had been partially halted by a nullification seal, and there was a pool of blood on the ground, but the rock that should have been crushing Kakashi’s body lay broken across the ground. 

Narumi took one look around, just to make sure he hadn’t missed anything he could easily find himself, and then left. It took him a painful two days to reach Konoha, even running at full speed the whole way, pulling on his vast chakra reserves to keep going when he tired. He was exhausted by the time he finally arrived, but nevertheless he went straight to Sakumo’s house. 

The door was locked, and no one answered when he knocked, so he pressed a bloody thumb to the seal-lock and let himself in. The house was seemingly empty and eerily quiet, and for a moment he thought Sakumo wasn’t home. 

He found Sakumo in Kakashi’s bedroom. Kakashi’s bedroom wasn’t particularly childish, for all that he was twelve years old. It was filled with textbooks, scrolls, weapons, and equipment. The only signs of Kakashi’s age was the cheerfully blue bedspread with a shuriken pattern and the stuffed dog that Sakumo clutched in his hands as he sat on Kakashi’s bed. Sakumo wasn’t crying, but it was clear from the redness in his eyes and the tracks on his cheeks that he had been recently. 

Narumi hadn’t been sure whether or not to say anything, but as he stared at the blank emptiness in Sakumo’s eyes, he knew he couldn’t stay quiet. “I went to Kannabi Bridge,” he said. “Kakashi’s body was missing.” 

Sakumo looked up, a glint of anger in his eye. “Iwa?” 

“Maybe. I don’t know. They left the Iwa shinobi behind, so I don’t think so.” Narumi sat beside him and clasped a hand on Sakumo’s shoulder. “Sakumo, I need you to let me borrow your wolf summons. I can’t track him on my own.” 

A fire sparked in Sakumo’s eyes, chasing away the eerie blankness. “I’m coming with you.” 

“Would the Hokage let you?” Narumi asked. 

“I don’t give a damn!” Sakumo snarled. “He’s my son!” 

“And my godson,” Narumi said, and the fight left Sakumo all at once. His hands rested, limp, on the stuffed dog. Narumi put a hand over his. “Sakumo. Let me do this for you.” 

Sakumo said nothing for a moment. He stood, left the room, and came back with three vials of blood and a fresh bandage on his hand. “Here. Use these to summon them,” he said. “I. . .I can’t hope that he’s still—it would break me, to lose him twice. I can’t. But if anyone can bring him home, it’s you.” 

Narumi placed the vials of blood in the pouch at his hip. “I’ll bring him back, Sakumo. Believe it.” 

Sakumo turned away, and Narumi left, heading back to Kusa. The scene was much as he had left it, although the bodies of the Iwa shinobi had since been removed. He poured one of the vials onto his hand, slammed it to the ground, and said, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” 

He must have misjudged the amount of chakra, because Ran was the only one to appear instead of all three. “Narumi-san,” Ran said, in her surprisingly deep voice. “You require my assistance?” 

“Kakashi was here, in that cave. Can you track him?” Narumi asked. 

“Of course,” Ran said. 

They started from the cave where Kakashi’s body had been. Ran didn’t need to sniff the blood to get Kakashi’s scent; Narumi suspected she knew Kakashi’s scent as well as she knew Sakumo’s. She set straight to tracking where Kakashi had gone, leading them deeper into the cave-in, through narrow crevices between the rocks. 

Eventually, she stopped. “The trail ends here.” 

Narumi brushed a hand against the earth, which was unnaturally smooth. “A jutsu?” 

“It smells like earth chakra,” Ran agreed. 

“Dammit,” he muttered. If they’d escaped into the earth, there was no telling what direction they had gone. “We’ll search the area. They have to be around here somewhere.” 

Narumi knew that Madara had to be hiding somewhere nearby, that if he just searched hard enough to find Kakashi, they would be successful. They searched throughout the night, and when Ran dispelled, he summoned her again, this time with Gin and Jun as well. 

They searched until he had only a few drops of blood left, and a note from Tsubame asking where he was waited for him on the scroll they used to exchange messages. 

Narumi sank to his knees and struck the earth with his fist. “Dammit! Where are you, Kakashi?” 

He’d changed things, but not enough—he’d still lost one of his precious people. 

But not permanently—there were other chances. Kakashi was strong, and had a good head on his shoulders. He wouldn't fall to despair easily. Narumi would have other opportunities. 

Narumi took a deep breath and stood. “Okay,” he said, and pointed a finger up at the moon. “I’ll find you, Kakashi. I’ll bring you home. And you better be ready for me, Madara, you asshole!” 


	12. Chapter 12

The Hatake house was located in a quieter part of the village, away from the hustle and bustle of the market districts, civilian sectors, and apartment blocks. Most people in this area of the village were older shinobi, ones who were tired of the noise that the younger generations still enjoyed. A small fence, only as high as his waist, marked the boundaries of the garden. From the street he could make out a koi pond, a small vegetable garden, and, further back, a straw training dummy still stabbed full of shuriken and kunai. 

Across the street, three women and two men sipped their drinks and stared at him. Two hours ago, there had only been one. He suspected they were taking bets on whether or not he would enter, and when. 

Obito glanced at his watch. They were supposed to have a meeting at Minato’s house for lunch half an hour ago—he’d lost track of time. 

Obito stepped forward, opening the painted white fence as he did. Behind him, two of the watchers cursed, but he ignored them and set off down the stone path through the garden, past the maple tree in the front yard. 

He knocked, and received no answer. “Hatake-san?” he called, and knocked again. Still no answer. 

“He’s home, kid,” one of the watchers said. “Just go in.” 

Obito hesitated for a moment. Most veteran shinobi tended to place traps around their homes, particularly in dangerous times, and this could have been a trick to get him into some embarrassing trap—but he didn’t have much of a choice. 

He knocked again, and this time when he received no answer, he slid open the door. “Hatake-san? Sorry for the intrusion. It’s me, Obito, Kakashi’s—” 

He froze as he entered the main room. Sakumo sat slumped on the floor, his hair loose and wild rather than restrained in its customary ponytail, staring into the household shrine. A stick of incense burned there, with several unlit sticks and some small food offerings set beside it. Some of them, Obito knew, were Kakashi’s favorite foods. Two pictures sat inside the shrine, one of them of a woman Obito didn’t recognize, and one of Kakashi. 

Silently, Obito padded across the tatami floor and knelt beside Sakumo to light a stick of incense. 

“How old are you, Obito?” Sakumo asked. 

Obito almost jumped—Sakumo hadn’t even looked like he was awake, much less that he knew Obito was there. He glanced at him, feeling guilty for intruding, but quickly looked away at the sight of the man’s reddened eyes. “Uh, thirteen. Sir,” he said. 

“Thirteen,” the man repeated. “Kakashi was twelve years old. You know, Tsunade’s done some pretty interesting research at the hospital.” 

Obito officially had no idea where this conversation was going. “Uh, no, I didn’t.”

“You’re considered adults in the eyes of the village once you get that headband,” he said. “But your brains don’t finish developing until you’re in your twenties. Kakashi has changed so much since he was a baby—I always wondered, how different would he be at fifteen? At twenty?” He laughed, but he sounded like he might cry. “I thought I had the world of teen rebellion to look forward to.” 

“Kakashi rebelling. I’d pay money to see that,” Obito said, without really thinking. 

“Kakashi has always liked rules, ever since he was little. He was—he was so small when he was a baby,” Sakumo said, motiong with his hands. “He was born too early—Just holding him, I thought I’d crush him. Tsunade is a great medic, but her experience is in healing injuries and illnesses in adults and children, not babies. For a long time, we feared . . . well. I don’t know what I would do if I lost him. Didn’t know. He’s all I had left of her—he looks so much like her, you know.” 

Obito squinted at the portraits. It was hard to tell who Kakashi looked like, really, when all Obito could see were his eyes. 

“Ah, of course.” Sakumo reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. When he opened it, Obito could see it was stuffed full of pictures of Kakashi, from when he was a tiny, wrinkly baby to when he was a glaring twelve-year-old. In most of them he was wearing the mask, but Sakumoi pulled out one that showed his bare face. He did look a bit like the woman in the portrait, Obito realized. 

It was strange to think that he hadn’t known what his teammate really looked like until after his death. 

Sakumo put the pictures away gently, almost reverently. “I’m sure you didn’t come here to listen to a maudlin old man,” he said. “What can I do for you, Obito?” 

Obito held out the tanto, still wrapped in bandages. “Kakashi told me to bring this to you. He said to tell you he was giving it to me. He said you would know what he meant.” 

Sakumo reached out to brush his fingers against the tanto. “Of course,” he said. His eyes were damp; seeing it made tears well up in Obito’s eyes as well. 

Sakumo took a deep breath and stood. “Thank you, Obito. Come again tomorrow morning.” 

“What time?” Obito asked. 

Sakumo gave him a stiff smile. “I’ve heard about your habits. Just come when you can. I’m on mandatory leave, so I’ll be here.” 

Obito didn’t realize until he was halfway home that Sakumo hadn’t taken the tanto back. 

***

Obito skipped morning training the next day to go to Sakumo’s house—Minato had been sent out on a solo mission again, and Rin was practicing taijutsu with Gai. 

“You gonna go in, or are you just gonna stand there again?” one of the watchers from yesterday drawled. 

Obito scowled at them and strode resolutely forward to knock on the door. This time, Sakumo opened the door a few moments after the first knock. He looked more put together than yesterday—his eyes were still red, but his hair was brushed and in a ponytail, and he was wearing a fresh uniform. 

“Obito, right on time,” he said, as if Obito hadn’t gotten waylaid by about three old ladies on his way there. “Let me get on my shoes.” 

“Are we going somewhere?” Obito asked. 

“To the blacksmith,” Sakumo said as he pulled on his sandals and walked out the door. Obito hurried to keep up. “We need to get you a new sheath for that tanto. It could probably do with some maintenance, too. And then we’re going to a training ground, and you’re going to show me everything you know about using a tanto.” 

Obito tripped over his own feet. “But—don’t you want your tanto back?” 

Sakumo stopped and put a hand on Obito’s shoulder. “Obito. Kakashi gave that to you for a reason, and he sent you to me for a reason. The white chakra blade is yours now, and I am going to teach you how to use it.” 

Obito scrubbed at the tears that welled up in his eyes. “You . . . want to teach me?” 

“I do,” Sakumo said. 

Obito felt too stunned to say anything else—the White Fang, one of the greatest shinobi in Konoha, whose power rivalled the Sannin—Sakumo wanted to teach him? 

He followed Sakumo through the village in silence, and didn’t say a word as Sakumo ordered a new sheath and the blacksmith went over the maintenance of the blade. They walked all the way to one of the training grounds, and only then did Obito say, “But why?” 

“You’re one of Kakashi’s friends,” Sakumo said, as if that was all the explanation needed. “Now, show me what you know.” 

As it turned out, not much. ‘Stab them with the pointy end’ and ‘slash them with the sharp edge’ were pretty much the extent of Obito’s knowledge. Every time he tried to attack, Sakumo countered him immediately, and Obito found himself dropping the tanto or hitting the ground or sailing into the trees. It was both exhausting and completely humiliating. 

Still, after several hours, Sakumo nodded in satisfaction as if Obito hadn’t made a complete fool of himself. “This is good,” he said. 

“Good? I’m terrible! I don’t know anything!” Obito exclaimed. 

“Exactly. No bad habits to unlearn,” Sakumo said. He grinned, and the expression was positively wolfish. “Now let me show you how a Hatake fights.” 

If someone asked how a Hatake fought, the answer was, “like fucking demons,” apparently. By the end of the day, Obito was sure that never, in all his time training with Kakashi and Minato, had he felt so exhausted. Before, Minato’s attention had always been split between the three of them, so two-thirds of the time Obito had gone relatively unnoticed. It was both unnerving and exhilarating to have all of Sakumo’s attention focussed solely on him. One one hand, Obito knew he was a terrible ninja, and he was half-afraid Sakumo was going to realize that and wash his hands of him. On the other, this was the  _ White Fang _ . Obito was probably never going to get a chance like this for the rest of his life. 

The sun was setting by the time Sakumo finally declared, “Okay, that’s enough,” and Obito collapsed to the ground. 

“I can't move,” he groaned. 

Sakumo heaved him to his feet and clapped him on the back. “Walk it off, or you really won't be able to move,” he advised. “Come on, I'll treat you to Ichiraku.” 

Somehow, Obito managed to make it all the way to Ichiraku without collapsing by the side of the road. Ramen had never tasted so good.

He devoured three bowls without really thinking about it, and glanced guiltily at Sakumo when he finally noticed the growing stack of bowls. “Uh. Sorry.”

“You did well,” Sakumo said dismissively. “You've more than earned it. Another?” 

“I think I'm good,” Obito said, and turned that phrase over in his mind.  _ You did well.  _

_ You worked hard,  _ he'd heard before, along with  _ keep trying, you've almost got it _ , and several variations thereof. Never a simple, straightforward,  _ you did well. _

“Thanks,” he said. “For training with me today.” 

Sakumo chuckled. “Don't thank me yet. This time next week, you'll be cursing my name.”

Obito stared at him. Was Sakumo going to give him homework or something? “What do you mean?” 

“I’m going to train you, of course,” Sakumo said. 

“Oh. Cool,” Obito said. “I mean, wait, what? You can’t train me! Aren’t you super busy?” 

“Mandatory leave,” Sakumo reminded him. “I’m grounded until the Hokage clears me for duty again. Which means you and I are going to spend as much time training as possible before I get sent out again.” 

Sakumo got to his feet and handed a few bills to Teuchi, waving him off when he tried to return the change. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning, Obito.”

For the next week, Obito went to Sakumo’s house every morning. Sometimes he arrived early in the morning, and sometimes he arrived later, but no matter what, Sakumo always answered when he knocked, and together they walked to the training field. 

Sakumo was a firm believer in hands-on learning. Every morning, after a brief warm up, Sakumo would draw his tanto and launch himself at Obito, and Obito would have to defend himself. Sakumo would correct Obito’s form while attacking him—nudging a foot into place here, adjusting the position of his arm there. He moved so quickly that Obito had to use his Sharingan to track him—something that ended up being useful for learning how Sakumo attacked, as well. 

Every day, they trained from morning to night, until Obito was too exhausted to do anything but eat dinner and collapse into bed. Obito couldn’t really tell if he was improving or not, but Sakumo hadn’t given up on him yet, so he figured he had to be doing something right. Either that, or Sakumo was just killing time until he was allowed to go out on missions again. 

His answer came a week after they started training, when Sakumo slapped a pile of papers in front of Obito during their lunch break and said, “Sign these.” 

Obito, in the middle of eating, didn’t really pay attention to what he was signing until he was halfway through the papers. “Uh, what am I signing again?” he asked. 

“Apprenticeship papers,” Sakumo said. “With these, you’re officially my apprentice. You’ll be able to accompany me on missions out of the village, and I can nominate you for the jounin exams when you’re ready.” 

Half a roll of sushi fell out of his mouth. Obito quickly snapped his jaw shut and picked up the papers to actually read them instead of just signing at the bottom. The document was crammed full of legal jargon, so he skimmed it to pick out the important bits, which covered the missions they were allowed to go on together and the process of being nominated for the jounin exams. 

“S-rank missions?” he exclaimed. “We’re allowed to do S-ranks?”

“Perks of being apprenticed to an elite shinobi,” Sakumo said. “Although I won’t be taking you out on those for awhile. At least not just the two of us. Maybe if Narumi came along. . .” 

Obito nodded. His last mission had just been an A-rank—and if that could go so horribly wrong, he hated to think about what disasters might happen on an S-rank mission. 

“So, you interested?” Sakumo asked.

Obito gaped at him. “Am I—am I interested?” He grabbed the pen and scribbled his name across the pages as quickly as possible. He slammed them down on the ground when he was done and grinned at Sakumo. “No getting out of training me now. . .Shishou.” 

***

Obito ducked under the white blade heading towards his neck, slashing out with his own blade. His opponent dodged, but Obito was expecting that—he wouldn’t be able to win so easily. He swiped with his leg, forcing his opponent to jump, and dove forwards. The blade descended towards him but—there, an opening, one that he could take advantage of if he moved at just the right moment. He turned, narrowly dodging the enemy’s attack—the flat of the blade skimmed him, very slightly—and thrust forwards. 

The opponent dodged, but not quickly enough. 

Obito’s mouth fell open. “Holy shit!” he yelped. “I got you! I actually got you!” 

Sakumo eyed the new slash on his jounin vest wryly. “That you did,” he said. “Good job, Obito—your sharingan is fully mature now, isn’t it?” 

Obito blinked. “It is? I thought you were moving more slowly.” 

Sakumo smiled at him proudly. “That was all you. You did well, Obito. I think you’re ready for this now.” He pulled a scroll from a pouch at his hip. “I was going to give this to Kakashi when he turned thirteen. He’d want you to have it.” 

Sakumo held it out, and Obito accepted it and pulled it open. It was immediately apparent what the scroll was. “You’re letting me sign the wolf summoning scroll?” 

Sakumo handed him a kunai, handle-first. “You have to sign your name in blood, then put blood on your fingerprints and apply them to the scroll. Then I’ll show you how to summon.” 

Obito grinned and stabbed the kunai into his thumb, perhaps a little too eagerly. He cursed as blood gushed from the wound when he pulled out the kunai, and quickly spread the blood over his other fingers. In a few moments, he had a sloppy, but readable signature and five fingerprints on the scroll. He handed it back to Sakumo with a grin, and waited with bated breath for Sakumo to start the lesson. 

“To summon, you need to have blood on your hand,” Sakumo instructed. “It can be from your fingers, but you can also use blood from other parts of the body. Press your fingers to the ground and summon chakra to your hand to summon the animal. A small amount of chakra will summon younger animals, while larger amounts of chakra will summon multiple animals or older animals.” 

“Like Gin, Jun, and Ran,” Obito supplied. 

“Exactly. To summon all three of them, I have to use a fairly large amount of chakra. When they were puppies, it took a lot less,” he said. “Now, the wolves as a whole are fairly well-tempered. If you accidentally summon one that doesn’t like to be summoned, they’ll probably just send a different summons in their place instead of taking it out on you, and you won’t get any like Manda.” 

“Manda?” Obito asked.

“Orochimaru’s summons, a snake. Manda regularly threatens to eat him,” Sakumo said. “I can’t think of any wolf summons that would do that, although you might get one or two that just don’t want to help. I would recommend finding two or three younger wolves and building a rapport with them. Puppies might not seem so formidable right now, but they’ll get stronger alongside you, and in time you’ll become an incredible team.” 

“All right. How much chakra should I use?” he asked. 

Sakumo hummed thoughtfully. “About twice as much as you use for the Great Fireball Jutsu, I would say. The signs are boar, dog, bird, monkey, ram. Ready?” 

Obito nodded, flashed through the handsigns, and slammed his hand against the ground. “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” 

A cloud of smoke obscured his vision. Obito squinted into it, trying to see what he had summoned. 

A sharp yip resounded through the air, followed by another. “Congratulations,” Sakumo said, as the smoke cleared to reveal two wolves, one golden and one brown and white. “You're officially a wolf summoner.” 

The two wolf puppies wagged their tails at him “Um, hi. I'm Obito.” Obito held out his hand, and each of the wolves sniffed it. 

The golden one yipped excitedly and nearly tripped over her own feet as she bounded over to him and licked his cheek. “I'm Noodles!” she said. “Are you going on a mission? Take me with you! I’m ready!” 

The white and brown one yawned, padded over to Obito, and curled up in his lap. “What's his name, Noodles? Or, uh, her name?” he asked. 

“His name is Rice!” 

Noodles and Rice. Obito glanced at his lunch and wondered if she had come up with those on the spot. 

Sakumo cleared his throat. “As it happens, I do have a mission for the three of you.” 

Noodles leapt over to him, her tail wagging a mile a minute. “A mission? What is it? Are we protecting a caravan? Assassinating an evil overlord?” 

Sakumo held out a scroll. Obito looked at it in dismay. “A D-rank?” 

“Trust me,” Sakumo said, with a grin. “You'll thank me later.” 

Obito opened the scroll and groaned. “I hate you so much.” 

Their mission? Catching the daimyo's pet cat. 

An hour later, Obito had to admit Sakumo was right. Rice refused to wake up for longer than ten minutes at a time. Noodles was more likely to lunge after a butterfly than try to track that stupid cat. Whenever Obito tried to wake Rice up, Noodles inevitably lost interest and wandered off. 

It took them three hours to track down the cat. 

“I still hate you,” he told Sakumo when he returned. 

“Eat up,” Sakumo said, passing Obito his lunch and another scroll.

Obito opened it. “Weeding a garden? Really, Shishou?” 

Sakumo looked pointedly at Noodles, who was attempting to get a kunai out of a holster. She tripped and ended up tangled in the straps instead. “Do you want to take them out on a C-rank?” 

“Not . . . really,” Obito admitted. 

“They’ll grow quickly,” Sakumo assured him. “Once they’re about a year old, their growth starts to slow. How quickly they reach their full size really depends on the wolf—Ran kept growing for a few years after I met her.” 

Ran, Obito knew, was the largest of Sakumo’s wolves, standing just below his shoulder. “How large is the largest wolf you’ve seen?” 

“Oh, easily large enough for me to stand on her head,” Sakumo said. “We tend not to summon her, though—she doesn’t like to fight much. It’s better to stick to your personal summons. Eat your lunch; we’re expected at the mission site by one.” 

This time, Sakumo accompanied them to the mission, although he didn’t do anything but sit on the porch, watching as Obito cursed and struggled to pull up the weeds. Noodles tried to help, but she got underfoot more often than not, and she wasn’t strong enough to pull up the weeds on her own. Rice, on the other hand, found a nice, warm patch of dirt and curled up to sleep. 

“What I wouldn’t give for Rin and Kakashi,” he muttered, only to freeze and glance guiltily at Sakumo. 

Sakumo smiled gently at him. “They were good at D-ranks?” 

Obito snorted. “Rin was. Kakashi was terrible at D-ranks. He hated them, maybe that was why, or maybe he hated them because he was bad at them. He did them quickly, but he never pulled out the roots of the weeds, and he always bought the wrong groceries, and he always left dust everywhere when we were cleaning, and he always made little kids cry, and I’ve never seen an uglier fence than the ones he painted.” 

Sakumo laughed softly. “Kakashi always complained about D-ranks. He never had to do them before. Minato trained with him for a while, and then they went straight to C-ranks, and then the chuunin exams. Come to think of it, I never gave him any chores either.” 

“I think Minato-sensei had you covered there. We spent a year doing D-ranks.” Obito gave a weed a vigorous tug. “No one does D-ranks for a year! I’d rather go back to the academy than live through that again.” 

“I’m afraid I have some bad news for you,” Sakumo said. 

Obito turned to look at him so quickly his neck cracked. “You’re joking. Tell me you’re joking.” Sakumo stared back at him blankly. The corner of his lips twitched upwards slightly, and Obito threw a weed at him. “You are!” 

Sakumo, laughing, dodged away from the weed. “Better get working, or I really will keep you on D-ranks for a year. The faster you and your summons start working together, the faster you get to do a C-rank.” 

Obito looked at Rice, who was still fast asleep, and Noodles, who was fighting with the garden hose, and had a feeling he was going to be doing D-ranks for a very, very long time. Noodles, at least, was eager to help. It only took a few days for him to work out a method that worked for them. Noodles would find the weeds or track Tora or do whatever smaller jobs she could handle, and Obito would take care of the things she was too small to do. Rice was harder, and Obito spent a good two weeks just carrying him around in his jacket, but eventually he discovered that Rice was susceptible to bribery. Promise him some head-scratches and a meal at Yakiniku-Q, and he would reluctantly rouse himself and help. He was always the first to dispel, but at least he was willing to work with them. 

Other than that, he didn’t really go on missions much—Team Seven had been well and truly split up. Rin had been attached to a squad with Kogane Senju, which was good. Obito could trust Kogane to always have his teammates’ backs. She worked primarily as a medic, but she wasn’t only that—he’d seen her knock over a tree with a single punch, and had a feeling she’d been getting tips from Tsunade. When he had the time or when Sakumo was busy, Obito joined her squad for training and, when the puppies grew and got a little better at working together, for the occasional C-rank or B-rank. 

He still thought about Kakashi, sometimes, when he caught Sakumo staring into the distance or when his eyes landed on the team picture beside his bed. Sometimes he wondered if Kakashi was looking down on them and feeling proud of how much they’d grown. Probably not, though. Kakashi was kind of an asshole like that. 

***

“Uchiha-san. The Hokage wants to see you.” 

The two of them stopped mid-spar. Obito glanced at Sakumo, who nodded and sheathed his weapon. “I’ll be there,” Obito said to the ANBU, who vanished in a swirl of leaves. 

He made quick time to the Hokage’s office—in the middle of war, even when things were winding down, you didn’t dawdle when the Hokage summoned you. When he arrived, Narumi, Kogane, and the rest of Rin’s squad were already there, waiting for him. 

Rin was noticeably absent. 

“Where’s Rin?” Obito immediately asked. 

“Rin Nohara was captured by Kiri shinobi,” the hokage said, and Obito's world stopped. 

He'd already lost Kakashi—he couldn't lose Rin, his best friend, his only friend. A world where Rin wasn't smiling and laughing, where they would never train together and go out for ramen together . . . he couldn't imagine what that world would be like. 

A hand landed on his shoulder. 

Obito pulled himself together. Captured, not dead. He hadn't been able to save Kakashi; he would save Rin. 

“Your mission is retrieval and reconnaissance. This is Kiri’s first move in weeks, and I want to know why,” the Hokage said. “You will be accompanied by Narumi Uzumaki, jounin of Uzushio, who will be performing additional reconnaissance in the area on behalf of the Uzukage. In the event of open conflict, you will defer to his command. You are to leave immediately. Dismissed.”

They had all come prepared, well used to being shipped out with little to no time to get ready. The five of them—Obito, Narumi, Kogane, and Kogane’s genin teammates—met at the gate within the hour, submitted themselves to the scrutiny of the gate guards, and were on their way. 

Kogane led them to the site of their last mission. “We were assigned reconnaissance in the area, and were unexpectedly ambushed,” he said. “Rin-san was captured here. The enemy deliberately drew us away from her, thus opening her to attack from their hidden allies.” 

Obito bit down on his thumb until it bled and slammed it to the ground, summoning Noodles and Rice in a puff of smoke. The puppies had grown quickly, as Sakumo had said, and Noodles now stood as tall as his hip, with Rice a few inches shorter. 

“Noodles,” Obito said, cutting her off before she had a chance to get distracted. “You remember Rin, right? Can you smell her?” 

“Of course!” Noodles exclaimed, sounding shocked that he would even ask. “I smell Rin, and blood, and a bunch of gross old men, and flowers, and dirt, and—” 

Rice sniffed the ground, briefly, and then trotted forwards. 

“Wait for me!” Noodles said, and raced ahead only to quickly correct herself moments later. “She’s this way, I promise.” 

Obito ran after Noodles, pushing himself onwards even when he stumbled, focused on nothing but moving forwards. He didn’t stop, even when the opening of a cave appeared before him, just drew Kakashi’s tanto and stabbed the closest shinobi as Noodles leapt onto another. 

The cave burst into chaos as his companions entered the fray. Obito shoved himself away from the Kiri shinobi and looked away, eventually spotting Rin sitting in the center of the gave. He darted to her side. “Rin? Are you okay?” 

She looked at him with wide, shocked eyes. “Obito . . .” 

He grabbed her arm and pulled her up and out of the cave. “It’s okay, Narumi and your squad are with us. Let’s get out of here.” 

He started to run, still holding on to Rin. “Obito,” she said. “Obito, stop, there’s something I have to tell you!” 

“Now?” he said, glancing behind him. They hadn’t managed to leave the cave unnoticed, and had a few Kiri shinobi on their tail. 

“Obito, they planned this! I can’t go back to the village,” she said. “They sealed the Sanbi inside me, but the seal won’t hold. They let me escape so that the Sanbi would break out and destroy the village.”

“The Sanbi?” he exclaimed. “Are you sure?” 

“I overheard them talking after . . . after they put the seal on me, when they thought I was unconscious. Obito, we can’t let the Sanbi escape and destroy the village.” Rin took a deep, rattling, breath. “Give me your kunai.” 

“My kunai?” He looked back at her, at her resolute expression, and realized. “Rin, no. You can’t. There has to be another way!” 

“The seal is breaking already,” Rin said desperately. “Please, Obito! If it breaks, the Sanbi will wreak havoc from here to Konoha. I can’t let that happen.” 

“Well, tough luck, because I can’t let you die. I let Kakashi die. I won’t do the same thing again. You’re my precious friend,” Obito said. “I won’t abandon you, not now, not ever!” 

“Obito . . .” 

Obito looked behind them and cursed. They’d lost one of their pursuers, but the remaining two were gaining on them. He spun around, pushing Rin behind him, and drew Kakashi’s tanto. 

He ran a thumb over the hilt, took a steadying breath, and ran at the nearest Kiri shinobi with his sharingan activated, moving quickly enough that the shinobi wouldn’t be able to stop him in time. 

Quickly enough that, when Rin appeared in front of him, hands outstretched to guide the tanto into her chest, he realized he couldn’t stop in time. He could see everything that was about to happen—a few more steps, and his tanto would plunge into Rin’s chest, and without a healer they wouldn’t be able to save her in time—

Rin was going to die, and he couldn’t do anything to stop it from happening. 

His sharingan burned. 

His tanto was scant millimeters away from Rin’s chest when something large and heavy slammed into his side, sending him head-over-heels and slamming him into a tree. He tried to stand, only for his limbs to catch on something and send him tumbling back to the ground. “Whoa!” Narumi exclaimed, reaching out to steady Obito. “Careful with that.” 

Obito’s eyes fell to the tanto, red with blood. “Rin!” he shouted as he twisted around, mouth in his throat. 

Rin stared back at him, completely unharmed. 

Narumi stood and hissed. He pressed a hand to his side, and it came away red with blood. “A little too slow,” he said. 

“Narumi-san, the Sanbi,” Rin said, her voice trembling. 

“Rin,” Narumi said. “It’s gonna be okay, but you have to trust me. Show me the seal. The rest of you, watch our backs.” 

Obito took up a position guarding them, but couldn’t help but glance at them to keep an eye on the proceedings. Rin laid on the ground and pulled up her shirt, revealing a seal written on her skin in blank ink. Narumi examined it, then pulled out a brush and a pot of ink and set to work. 

Rin giggled, sounding surprised herself at the sound. “Sorry, it’s cold,” Narumi said. “It’ll be done soon.” 

Slowly, a second seal developed on top of the first. Obito wasn’t really sure what Narumi was doing, but he seemed to have it all under control, so he couldn’t help but relax. Narumi was a seal master, Minato-sensei had said—if anyone could help Rin, it was him. 

It still felt like an eternity passed before Narumi said, “That’s done. No demons escaping anytime soon.” 

Rin let out a sigh of relief and shakily got to her feet. “Narumi-san, I don’t know how I can ever repay you.” 

“Eh, you can buy me some Ichiraku when we get back.” Narumi grinned and ruffled her hair, and then he dropped his hand to a pouch at his waist. Obito tensed and searched for enemies, but Narumi just pulled out a vial containing a few drops of red liquid and dropped it into his hand. Without a moment’s hesitation, he slammed his hand onto the ground and exclaimed, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” 

Obito’s mouth fell open as a cloud of smoke obscured his vision. Rin, beside him, seemed equally startled; she must not have known that Narumi had a summons either. Obito squinted into the smoke, eager for a glance of the animal, only to see . . . wolves?

“Ran? Gin? Jun?” he said. 

Gin gave him a doggy grin, as did Jun, but Ran didn’t so much as glance at him. “Narumi-san,” she said. “You require resistance.” 

“Yeah,” Narumi said, and whispered in her ear. 

After a moment, Ran nodded. “Of course,” she said. 

“Great!” Narumi climbed onto Ran’s back and waved at them. “Hold down the fort, kids!” 

Ran vanished in two massive bounds, leaving them alone in the middle of a field. 

Noodles sighed. “I want to be as cool as Ran-sama when I grow up.” 

“Doesn’t everyone?” Obito said. 

They stood, for a moment, in silence, staring at the horizon. 

“Where is the fort?” Kogane said. 

Obito blinked at him. “The what?” 

“The fort Narumi-san instructed us to secure,” Kogane said. “I assume it is nearby?” 

Obito snorted, and then laughed, and then Rin was laughing too, and the two of them had their arms around each other’s shoulders. He was crying a little bit too, but everyone was nice enough not to mention it. Not like Kakashi—Kakashi would’ve immediately made fun of him for being a crybaby. 

“It’s a figure of speech!” he laughed. “Not a literal fort, jeez, Kogane. All that, and you’re ready to take on an entire fort already?” 

Rin laughed, delighted, and wrapped her other arm around Kogane to pull him into their impromptu hug as well. “So there is no fort,” Kogane said. 

“No, there’s no fort,” Rin said. “At least, I don’t think there is. There could be one nearby.” 

“Then we should do reconnaissance, in case Narumi-san knew of a fort and wanted us to secure it,” Kogane concluded. 

“How about we just wait for him to get back,” Obito suggested. “He can’t take that long. Come on, you guys must be exhausted. Let’s take a break.” 

After a moment’s thought, Kogane agreed that it was best to take a moment to recover, just in case they really did have to secure a fort. They didn’t want to set up a fire this close to enemy territory, but Rin had a supply of warming seals that they activated as the sun set and the chill of night set in. They all produced their rations, showing off what countries they had managed to get rations from and trading the ones they didn’t want. Kogane had the most, as it turned out, as his collection included rations from Iwa, Kiri, Uzushio, Konoha, and even Kumo. 

All of them agreed Konoha rations were the worst—somehow, they always managed to taste slightly like rancid meat. 

They all jumped to attention as they heard footsteps approaching, only to relax as they recognized the new arrival as Narumi. He was holding something in his arms, Obito noted. 

Rin held up a seal and activated it, causing it to emit a gentle light. “Narumi-san? Is someone hurt?” 

“He’s alive,” Narumi said grimly. “But barely. We have to get him back to Konoha, and fast.” 

Obito said nothing, too busy staring.

There, cradled in Narumi’s arms, was Kakashi. 

***

Narumi had half expected that Madara would slip out from between his fingertips again. He’d expected an empty cave, perhaps some sign that Kakashi had been there, and an eventual dead end. Not two Zetsu and Madara himself. Not Kakashi, wounded and barely conscious, but still alive. 

He’d gotten at least one of the Zetsu, but Madara had escaped. Narumi didn’t care; Kakashi was safe, in his arms, and still alive—for now. 

The chuunin were all still gaping at him. “Kogane,” he said, and Tsunade’s son snapped to attention. “Take your team and go to the Hokage. Rin, go with them. The Hokage will want to know about the Sanbi. Obito, with me. How fast can you run?” 

“As fast as I need to,” Obito said, determination plain in his eyes. 

“Good. Let’s go!” 

They took off, in the same direction at first. Narumi ended up in the middle of the formation, which was practical, if a little unusual for him—usually he was one of the ones taking point or protecting the rear. Rin and Obito ran beside him. Rin reached out, a brief green glow briefly rising to her hands before sputtering and disappearing. 

She stared at her hands in shock. “Something’s wrong with my healing,” she said. 

“You’re a jinchuuriki now,” he said. “You just got loaded with more chakra than you’ve had in your life, than most people ever have. It’s like, you used to have a nice little reservoir, and now it’s flooded and overflowing. Turn on the taps, and it all comes gushing out. Or something. Anyways, your control is going to be absolute shit for a long time.” 

It might never be as good as it was, but he didn’t tell her that, not when she already looked so distraught. 

They passed the rest of the run in silence; none of them felt much like talking. Obito was still staring at Kakashi like he wasn’t sure if he was awake or dreaming. Kogane was utterly focused, and Rin was stuck in her own head. Even Obito’s wolf puppies were quiet. 

They split as they approached the village; Narumi didn’t have time to submit himself to the scrutiny of the guards. Already, Kakashi felt cold and still in his arms. Instead, he snuck over the walls, quickly and quietly enough that the chuunin on guard didn’t notice. From there, he ran straight to the one place where he knew someone would be able to figure out what exactly Madara had done to Kakashi. 

He burst through the doors without so much as a hello, ignoring the shout of, “Hey, you can’t go in there!” from the little girl sitting at the reception desk. 

“Help him,” he said, and laid down Kakashi on the nearest flat surface. 

Orochimaru approached, interest apparent in his eyes. Narumi couldn’t help but shiver—Orochimaru was still creepy, even if he hadn’t done any weird experiments. 

“Well, well, well,” Orochimaru said. “Sakumo’s boy. Why didn’t you take him to the hospital?” 

“I don’t think they’re equipped to deal with what’s been done with him,” Narumi said. “His body was rebuilt using something. Half of him was crushed by a rock.” 

“Fascinating. You are correct.” Orochimaru leaned in closely. “Parts of his body have clearly been replaced—I need to take samples. Run tests.” 

“But he’s gonna be okay, right?” Obito said. 

Narumi laid a hand on his shoulder. “Kakashi will be fine. Orochimaru is a genius.” He might not have particularly trusted Orochimaru, but that much was true at least. “If anyone can understand what was done to Kakashi, it’s him.” 

“You flatter me,” Orochimaru said, in a tone that was plainly unflattered. “If you insist on staying, stand against that wall. I detest having intruders in my laboratory.” 

Narumi urged Obito towards the door. “Get Sakumo. Tell him to come to Orochimaru’s lab.” 

Obito nodded, but hesitated. “I’ll stay right here,” Narumi promised. 

With that, Obito ran from the room. Narumi retreated to the side of the room, perched on a table, and watched Orochimaru as he took a variety of samples and then busied himself with a variety of machines. Narumi didn’t know what Orochimaru was doing, and he didn’t really care as long as he figured out how to help Kakashi. 

“Anko,” Orochimaru called, after a moment, and the little girl who had yelled at him darted into the room. “Make our guest comfortable.” 

“Got it, sensei!” Anko declared, and rushed around the room like a miniature hurricane. By the time the door burst open again, Kakashi was set up on a bed, with an IV in his arm and a blanket tucked around him. 

Sakumo ran into the room like all the shinobi of Kiri and Iwa were at his heels, and then froze, just inside the doorway. “Kakashi,” he breathed. 

Anko barely had time to scrambled out of the way before Sakumo flashed across the room in a swirl of leaves, stopping just short of slamming into Kakashi’s bed.

“Do not disturb my instruments,” Orochimaru warned. 

Sakumo traced a shaking hand across Kakashi’s face, just over the scars that covered half of his face. “Narumi, you . . . you really did it,” he said, and choked back a sob. “I never thought . . . I didn’t dare hope . . . but you did. You really do have the luck of the gods,” he said, and sobbed again. 

“No crying in my laboratory,” Orochimaru said, somewhat crossly, but neither of them paid him any mind. 

Sakumo leaned down and pressed a kiss to Kakashi’s forehead. Smoothed a hand over his hair, still as wild as ever, if a bit longer now. Cupped his face in his hand, and brushed his thumb just under his empty eyelid. Straightened the blankets, and set a stuffed dog on the bed next to Kakashi. 

“You brought him home,” he said, and in one smooth motion he stood and strode across the room. 

He stopped in front of Narumi, and smiled. “Narumi, you wonderful, unbelievable man.” 

With that, Sakumo reached out and pulled Narumi into a crushing hug, and laughed until he cried. 


	13. Chapter 13

_ Darkness.  _

“Absolutely fascinating . . . do you realize, approximately half of his body has been reconstructed using Hashirama Senju’s cells? Fifty-three percent, if you want to be precise.” 

_ Pain.  _

“I don’t really care whose cells they are. They could be the fucking Tsuchikage’s and I wouldn’t care.” 

_ He knew that voice.  _

“Of course you don’t.” 

“Sensei. Sensei, I think he’s waking up.” 

“Ah, of course. Another dose, I think.” 

_ Nothing.  _

***

_ Pain.  _

“Would you please stop bringing contaminants into my laboratory?” 

“It’s food. What if he wakes up and he’s hungry?” 

“Then I will send Anko to buy food.” 

“She’s nine. She’d probably buy him sweets or fried food. And shouldn’t you have other genin?” 

“Ah, yes. Them. They showed little promise.” 

_ A warm, gentle touch. _

“Hey, Kakashi, it’s okay . . . Orochimaru, can I give him more painkillers now?” 

“Yes. His last dosage was eight hours ago.” 

_ Nothing.  _

***

_ Pain.  _

“And then Rin tried to punch a tree—she does that now, it’s pretty cool—only I guess she used way, way too much chakra, and the tree exploded everywhere! Kushina laughed so hard I thought she was gonna be sick. So we decided maybe we should stick to just walking up trees for now, because Rin only blows them up a tiny bit that way.” 

“If you insist on staying, be quiet.” 

“Uh, right, sorry. Orochimaru.” 

“That’s Orochimaru-sama to you.”

“Heh. Right. Um, is Kakashi supposed to look all angry like that?”

“He has been listening to you blather on for several hours. I suspect he may also be in need of additional medication. Anko.” 

“Got it, sensei.” 

“I can do that, you know.” 

“You will not lay so much as a finger on my equipment. Anko will handle it.” 

_ Nothing.  _

***

Kakashi opened his eyes. 

Or, he tried to, and failed upon finding his eyelids had stuck together. He reached up to scrub at his eyes, only for his arm to fail to move. He tried the other, and although it was slow to respond, managed to rub at his eyes enough that they were able to open.

He blinked, for a moment certain something was wrong with his vision because everything was white. 

“You’re awake,” a familiar voice rasped. 

Kakashi looked to the side, grateful to find that there wasn’t anything wrong with his vision—it was just that he was in Orochimaru’s laboratory, and everything except for Orochimaru’s hair and eyes was white. “Hold still,” Orochimaru instructed. “I have tests I want to run now that you are awake. Move when I tell you. You may want to displace that boy.” 

Kakashi looked at his other arm and found the reason why he hadn’t been able to move it. Obito was holding his hand, and his head was resting on top of their clasped hands. 

“He has been here day and night, whenever your insufferable father was not,” Orochimaru muttered. “Move your left arm.” 

Kakashi did. “How long have I been here?” 

“Fifteen days,” Orochimaru said. “Narumi-san brought you here.” 

Kakashi had vague memories of that, he thought. Of Narumi bursting into the place Zetsu had taken him, of Narumi carrying him away. Nothing, after that, except for vague snippets of things that may or may not have happened. 

“Move your right arm.” 

Kakashi attempted to extract his hand from under Obito’s face without waking him up, moving as slowly and carefully as possible. Obito, however, had apparently become less of a heavy sleeper since Kakashi had been—dead? asleep?—gone, and opened his eyes the moment Kakashi pulled their hands apart. 

“Whazzat?” he mumbled, and then shot to his feet so quickly he nearly knocked over the IV beside the bed. “Kakashi! You’re awake.” 

His hands went to Kakashi’s shoulders, holding tight, as Obito leaned down to peer into his face. “Are you okay? You’re not in pain, are you? Tsunade said that if Orochimaru is mean to you I have to tell her, and then she’ll beat him up. Are you hungry? Your dad made soup. A lot of soup, actually, I think he was going kind of crazy.”

Obito gasped. “Your dad! I have to tell him.” He looked around wildly, still holding onto Kakashi’s shoulders. 

“Move your left leg,” Orochimaru said. 

“Right, I’ll have Noodles get him,” Obito decided, and raised his hand to his mouth. 

“No summoning in my laboratory,” Orochimaru said. 

Obito gaped at him. Kakashi realized, suddenly, that he had missed all of Obito’s ridiculous and over-the-top faces, even if they did make his stomach squirm uncomfortably. “You summon snakes all the time!” 

“Snakes are intelligent, wise creatures,” Orochimaru said. “Your mongrels are a menace.” 

“Wolves,” Obito said, and raised his thumb to his mouth. 

“Anko will go,” Orochimaru said. 

“Do I have to?” a girl said from outside the laboratory. 

“Yes. Move your right leg,” Orochimaru said. 

Kakashi did so, as the girl sighed heavily. Moments later, a door opened and closed. “I am hungry,” he said to Obito. 

Obito beamed. It made his stomach hurt, and not just because of the hunger. “Here. It’s kind of cold, because Orochimaru said I’m not allowed to use his bunsen burners anymore, but it’s pretty good either way.” 

Kakashi sipped at the soup, not expecting much, only to be surprised. “Oh.” 

“It’s your favorite, right? Miso soup and eggplant? Trust you to have such boring, old-man tastes, Bakashi,” Obito said. 

Kakashi looked at him for a few moments. Obito was smiling, like he couldn’t help but smile when looking at Kakashi, like he was really, genuinely happy. 

The whole time, Madara had been telling Kakashi about how the world was terrible and broken, and on one hand, he knew it was true. The life of a shinobi was cruel. There were countless times in his life that his father had almost died, or he had almost died. On the other hand, there was Obito. Bright and smiling even when, as far as Kakashi could see, he didn’t have any reason to be. 

“I met Madara Uchiha,” he said. 

Obito blinked at him. “Oh, cool,” he said. “Wait—what? Madara Uchiha as in, that Madara Uchiha? He’s dead though, right? Holy shit, are you dead?” 

“Kakashi is alive,” Orochimaru said. “Wiggle your fingers.” 

Kakashi wiggled his fingers, and then his toes for good measure. “Fingers!” Orochimaru said crossly. 

Kakashi wiggled his fingers. 

Orochimaru made a noise that could only be described as ‘intrigued’ and started to adjust a variety of dials and buttons. 

“Madara Uchiha, as in that Madara Uchiha. He survived by attaching himself to a tree,” Kakashi said. “I think.” 

He had been either unconscious or in incredible pain for the majority of the time. 

“Wouldn’t he be super old?” Obito said, wrinkling his nose. 

Kakashi nodded sagely. “Super, super old.” 

And Obito—Obito laughed, and threw his arms around Kakashi to pull him into a hug. 

Kakashi froze. 

Obito had never, ever hugged him before. In fact, Kakashi was fairly certain the only person who had ever hugged him was his father. 

Kakashi’s cheeks felt uncomfortably warm; he hoped his injuries weren’t infected. 

“Stop that. You are raising his heartbeat and interfering with the data,” Orochimaru said. 

“Stuff your data,” Obito said, and didn’t stop hugging Kakashi. 

Kakashi, slowly, reached around and hugged Obito back. It was nice to touch someone that wasn’t one of Madara’s creepy Zetsu things. 

He jerked away as the door burst open, this time to admit his father. “Dad,” he said, not bothering to hide the relief that overtook him. 

Sakumo visibly breathed a sigh of relief. “Kakashi.” 

In a heartbeat, Kakashi found himself gathered up in his father’s arms, held against his chest like he was a little kid again. Sakumo smoothed a hand over his hair, too wild and too long, and kissed Kakashi’s forehead where his headband should have been. “You’re safe,” he said. “I’ve got you.” 

Kakashi buried his face in his father’s shirt. He smelled like wolves and dirt and the maple tree in front of the house. “You’re really here?” he said. 

Madara had invented countless genjutsu to make Kakashi lose hope, created countless scenarios where Kakashi had been taken home only to wake up and find himself back in the cave, but none of them had felt like this. 

“I’m really here,” Sakumo said. “And so are you.” 

They stayed like that for several long moments, until Orochimaru said, “As far as my tests show, he should be well enough to leave. I want him back for more tests next week. If his condition worsens bring him to me immediately. Now get out of my laboratory.” 

“We’re going, we’re going,” Sakumo said. “Kakashi, can you walk?” 

Kakashi slung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. The leg that Madara had replaced still felt strange to walk on, like it wasn’t really part of him. He had to focus to move it the way he wanted to, but he could move. He took a few steps, and then nodded. “I can walk,” he said. 

Sakumo didn’t ask him if he was sure, just gathered up a few things that Kakashi hadn’t noticed before, with Obito’s help. Obito gathered up the food, while Sakumo bundled up Kakashi’s blankets and Tobi. Kakashi couldn’t believe Sakumo had brought Tobi—he really hoped Obito hadn’t noticed that he still kept a stuffed dog. The thought of Obito knowing that was too mortifying to contemplate, so he returned his focus to walking out the door without forgetting to move the leg Madara had given him. 

Behind him, Sakumo and Obito talked quietly, something about noodles and rice. Kakashi wanted to listen in—he didn’t remember them being so close, before—but trying to eavesdrop made him forget to move the new leg and almost sent him careening into a vegetable stand. Kakashi tuned them out and instead focused on moving one foot in front of the other. 

He’d never been to Orochimaru’s laboratory, so he hadn’t known how far away it was from his house. Kakashi just kept moving, even though each step took more and more of his concentration, until he was so focused that he didn’t notice the fruit stand right in front of him and nearly walked straight into it. 

“Whoa there!” Sakumo exclaimed, halting Kakashi with a hand on his shoulder. Kakashi tried very hard not to wobble, but had the feeling he wasn’t entirely successful, judging by Sakumo’s concerned frown. 

Sakumo held out the blankets to Obito. “Obito, can you take these?” 

“Sure thing,” Obito said, and shifted the bags of food to one hand so he could take the blankets with the other. Obito plucked Tobi from the top of the pile and tucked him into the top of his jacket, leaving him looking like one of those Inuzuka kids who carried their ninken puppies like that. 

His arms free, Sakumo turned around so that his back was to Kakashi. “Hop on,” he said. 

“I don’t need a piggy-back ride,” Kakashi said. 

“Come on,” Sakumo cajoled. “You love piggy-back rides!” 

Kakashi’s face burned. “Dad,” he groaned. “When I was three, maybe.” 

“I distinctly remember a certain chuunin getting so tired after his first time training with his team that he asked me for a piggy-back ride home,” Sakumo teased. 

Obito laughed. Kakashi was going to  _ die _ . 

Just to get his dad to stop talking already, he wrapped his arms around the man’s neck and let Sakumo hoist him up. It was a toss-up between what was more embarrassing: being carried like a little kid when he was already a jounin, or Obito carrying around Kakashi’s stuffed animal. 

It was kind of nice to not have to concentrate on moving his arm and leg properly, though; he was free to focus on Sakumo and Obito’s conversation. 

“It’s okay, Shishou,” Obito said. “I’ll train with Kogane’s squad.” 

“If you’re sure,” Sakumo said. “You’re more than welcome to come by. I’m sure Kakashi would appreciate some company his own age.”

Kakashi wasn’t entirely sure why he would need or want company his own age, especially since he was going to start training as soon as he got home. He’d spent too long lying around already, and he had to get used to fighting with his new limbs as soon as possible. The war wasn’t going to end just because he felt a little under the weather.

Kakashi rested his cheek against Sakumo’s shoulder and started to plan. Once they arrived at home, he would organize his supplies and see what he needed to restock. Then he would train, starting with warmups and simple exercises and working his way up to more complicated maneuvers. Maybe Gai would be willing to assist him—Gai was always willing to do boring exercises in the name of a challenge. Once he was satisfied with his performance on the simpler tasks, maybe Obito would join in. Kakashi had to admit he was curious about what Obito had done in his time away, especially since he had called Sakumo ‘shishou.’ 

Kakashi planned, and the next thing he knew he was being lowered into his bed and blankets were being arranged over him. 

“Get some rest,” Sakumo said. 

Kakashi tried to push himself up. “I need to . . .” 

“Oh, just go to sleep, Bakashi,” Obito said, as he set down Tobi next to Kakashi’s pillow. “No one’s going to run off and defeat Iwa without you.” 

Kakashi’s arm gave out beneath him, and he flopped onto the bed with an irritated huff. Sakumo turned out the lights, gave him one last, long look, as if making sure he wasn’t going anywhere, and left the room. 

Obito stayed, fidgeting in place. “I, uh, still have your tanto,” he said. “If you want it back.” 

Kakashi closed his eye. “Keep it,” he said. “It was a gift. Don’t you know it’s rude to return gifts? You really are a one-of-a-kind idiot.” 

Obito sniffed, and made a sound that might have been a laugh if he wasn’t trying not to cry. “Look who’s talking, Bakashi.” 

“Shut up and let me sleep,” Kakashi said. 

He peeked through his eyelashes as Obito’s footsteps retreated. Obito walked to the door, then hesitated. “I really am glad you’re back,” he said quietly. “Team Seven wasn’t the same without you.” 

The door closed. Kakashi rolled over, hugged Tobi to his chest, and smothered his smile in his pillow.

***

In the days that came, Kakashi spent most of his time rebuilding his body’s strength and learning to use his new limbs as natural parts of his body. Gai was overjoyed to see him—he actually burst into tears when Kakashi said hello—and eagerly participated in Kakashi’s training. 

As for Obito, Kakashi actually saw more of him than he had initially expected. When he had given Obito the tanto, he had expected his father would teach Obito how to use it, that it would give his father something to focus on. He hadn’t expected his father to take Obito on as a student, much less that he would have Obito sign the wolf summoning scroll. It seemed like Obito was at his house every other day, meeting his father before they went off to train. He joined them for dinner almost every day of the week, and Kakashi often came home from training with Gai to find his father teaching Obito how to cook. 

Rin, on the other hand, he saw much less of than he had expected. While he was asleep, she had apparently undergone meetings with the various seal masters in the village—Minato, Jiraiya, and Kushina. The seal had been deemed safe, but that left Rin struggling to control the sudden influx of chakra. Most of the time she was off training with Kushina, trying to get a handle on controlling both her chakra and the demon inside her. Rin wasn’t allowed to leave the village at the moment, for fears that Kiri would attempt to kidnap her, but when Kogane’s squad went on missions inside the village, she often accompanied them. With Minato still out of the village on missions, there was no one to bring Team Seven back together on missions. Kushina did her best to bring them together for dinner now and then, but oftentimes Kakashi went days without seeing Rin. 

Between training and regaining his strength, Kakashi spent a surprising amount of time with Orochimaru, who had taken an intense interest in Kakashi’s new limbs. He spent an inordinate amount of time sitting on a lab table, a variety of instruments attached to him, occasionally moving his arm and leg or channeling chakra through the limbs. 

“Absolutely fascinating,” Orochimaru said, as he examined the spot where Kakashi’s body blended with the parts Madara had made to replace the crushed half of his body. “Your body has almost completely accepted the Hashirama cells as part of your body.” 

“What does that mean?” Kakashi asked. 

Orochimaru looked at him, scientific curiosity clear in his eyes. “That is what we must find out.” 

The next day, Orochimaru gave him a pot of dirt. “There is a seed there,” he said. “Make it grow.” 

Kakashi eyed the pot of dirt. “The Wood Release uses earth and water chakra, doesn’t it?” 

“Correct,” Orochimaru said. “I assume you are capable of using both. The seal used for Wood Release is Snake.” 

Kakashi focused on the pot of dirt and molded his chakra. Earth and water didn’t come naturally to him, but he was capable of using them. 

The pot of dirt turned to mud. “Fascinating,” Orochimaru said again, as he stared at his machines. He produced another pot of dirt. “Again, if you would.” 

Kakashi molded his chakra in different ways, using different ratios of earth and water chakra, and each time ended up with different consistencies of mud. “What are your machines telling you? What do they do?” he asked, as they waited for Anko to go to the store and bring them more pots of dirt. 

Orochimaru gave him a brief overview of his instruments, which somehow still managed to include several words Kakashi had never heard before. Orochimaru, when asked for a more detailed explanation, instead handed him several massive texts and a variety of scrolls as thick and long as his forearm. 

Kakashi read, and slowly but surely, he learned what each instrument attached to him did, and what the readings Orochimaru took meant. He hadn’t paid much attention to the more scientific side of the ninja arts before, but he learned quickly. Orochimaru’s research was surprisingly interesting. He was researching several ninjutsu, and indeed knew more than anyone else in the village, except perhaps the Hokage. He had invented several of his own techniques, and showed them to Kakashi when he expressed interest. He experimented with seals, although he didn’t consider himself a master of the art, and only knew enough to suit his purposes. What those were, Kakashi wasn’t entirely sure—Orochimaru was working on several projects that he refused to tell Kakashi anything about. Kakashi suspected Orochimaru was part of ANBU, and did research for them. 

Orochimaru also knew how to summon snakes, as did Anko—the two of them frequently used smaller snakes to send messages to each other when Anko was running errands or training elsewhere. 

“Don’t anger her. She is incredibly venomous,” Orochimaru warned, as Kakashi let a snake as thin as his smallest finger slither across his hand. 

“Don’t you have the antidote?” Kakashi asked. 

“I have no need for it. I am immune to all the venoms my snakes produced,” Orochimaru said. 

“Useful,” Kakashi said. “How did you do that?” 

Orochimaru stabbed him with a needle. 

Kakashi jerked away, too slowly to fend him off—Orochimaru was surprisingly fast when he wanted to be, and Kakashi’s reflexes weren’t nearly where they used to be. “What was that?” 

“Building up your immunity,” Orochimaru said, and went back to his work as if nothing had happened. 

Kakashi shrugged it off and went back to work on his pot of dirt. Half an hour later, he threw up all over Orochimaru’s floor. 

Orochimaru handed him a bucket. “If you must throw up, do so in something easy to clean.” 

“What did you give me?” Kakashi gasped as he bent over the bucket. 

“Just a little venom. You’ll be fine,” Orochimaru said. 

Kakashi ended up staying in the laboratory overnight, too overcome with nausea and fever to make the trip home. He had vague impressions of a quiet, but angry conversation between Orochimaru and Sakumo, and in the morning woke to a warm bowl of miso soup with eggplant and a plate of grilled fish, unusual because Orochimaru was strict about having food in his lab. 

“Your father,” Orochimaru said with a grimace, “. . . insisted.” 

Orochimaru’s eye was noticeably bruised. Kakashi decided not to draw attention to it. “Thank you,” he said, and gulped down the soup. 

Orochimaru didn’t give him another dose of the venom for a few days, and when he did it was noticeably smaller. Kakashi felt a bit queasy, but was well enough to head home when it was time for dinner. Orochimaru never dismissed him, and the lab was never closed as far as Kakashi could tell. To be honest, he wasn’t entirely certain Orochimaru had a home outside of the lab, as the man was there and working no matter when Kakashi arrived. He once went to the lab at three in the morning, just to see, and Orochimaru was there in his lab coat, as he had been when Kakashi had left that evening. 

Anko, who was active and a little too loud and rambunctious for Kakashi to particularly enjoy spending time with her, made it into a sort of game. They took turns attempting to find a time when Orochimaru wasn’t in the lab, excluding times when he was on a mission or had been summoned away by the Hokage. So far, they had had no success; Kakashi was fairly certain the man had sent snakes to spy on them, so that he would always know when they were headed to the lab and could arrive there before they did. 

Snakes, Kakashi was quickly discovering, were incredibly useful. They could be small enough to go unnoticed by all but the most attentive shinobi, and could easily sneak into inaccessible areas. They made excellent spies, and could also be used for surprise attacks or assassinations. Almost all of Orochimaru’s snakes were incredibly venomous, which was useful both if you sent them to attack someone directly and if you harvested their venom and used it in other ways. They could both send and receive messages. The larger snakes, which Orochimaru had never summoned for Kakashi to see, were deadly in battle, easily capable of crushing an entire apartment block. 

“And much more intelligent than those mongrels of your father’s,” Orochimaru muttered. “Running through my laboratory, knocking over my equipment, destroying my experiments,  _ eating my snakes _ . . .” 

“They’re kind of cute,” Kakashi mused, raising his hand up to his face to examine the blunt nose and smiling mouth of the snake draped over his hand. 

“They are intelligent and wise creatures,” Orochimaru said snootily.

Kakashi scratched the snake under the chin, and it swayed back and forth happily.

They were super cute. 

Anko, who had her feet up on a desk and was tearing her way through a massive pile of dango, added, “They’re cute.” 

“ _ Wise and intelligent _ ,” Orochimaru hissed. Both of them wisely and intelligently decided not to continue the discussion.

Anko returned to her pile of dango, and Kakashi returned to his pot of dirt. Surprisingly, it had yet to become mud. Unsurprisingly, it had yet to become a pot of plant rather than a pot of dirt. 

Kakashi sighed, closed his eye, and focused on the seed planted in the dirt once again. 

“Holy shit!” Anko squawked. 

Kakashi opened his eyes, and saw not mud, but a small, green stalk. “I . . . did it,” he said. 

Orochimaru was buried in his machines, muttering under his breath. “Absolutely incredible,” he said. “Very well done, Kakashi-kun.” 

“You did the mokuton!” Anko cheered, nearly knocking over her pile of dango in her glee. 

A small smile tugged at the corner of his lip. “Yeah,” he said, as he stared down at the small sprout in the middle of the pot. “I did.” 

“Do it again,” Anko urged.

“Yes, do,” Orochimaru said, and handed him another pot. 

Now that he knew how he was meant to mold his chakra, it was easier, and only a few moments later a small, green plant pushed out of the dirt. He fed it more chakra, urging it to grow, until he was holding not a sprout but a very young sapling. 

He made the plants grow until he felt faint from chakra exhaustion, and collapsed into bed the moment he arrived home, only waking up to gulp down the soup Obito waved under his nose. 

The next day, when he went to Orochimaru’s lab at the arranged time, Orochimaru was not busy with his research, but was waiting for him by the door. “Come,” he said, striding past Kakashi. “We will be working outside today.” 

Anko was waiting for them by the equipment, which had been moved into a clearing behind the lab. Kakashi hooked himself up, with some assistance from Anko, while Orochimaru checked the equipment and finished setting up. 

“Now, grow a tree,” Orochimaru said. 

Kakashi looked at the ground dubiously. All the times before he had started with a seed and simply urged it to grow; he wasn’t sure if the same process would work to create a tree from scratch. 

But now that he had done it once, it was like second nature; he reached out to the ground with his chakra, rooting a little ball of earth and water chakra into the ground. The chakra spread its roots down into the ground and shot up into the air, a tree growing from where there had been only dirt moments before. 

Orochimaru made him keep going until his chakra was exhausted and they sat in a small grove of trees, each of them in a slightly different stage of growth. By that time, Anko had long since run off to do her own training with the other genin who were ostensibly on her team, although Kakashi had never met them. 

“I have gathered more data in these past weeks than I have since I started this research,” Orochimaru said. “As such, I would like to offer you these. I would appreciate further opportunities to study your abilities in action.” 

Kakashi accepted the stack of papers Orochimaru handed him—apprenticeship papers. He picked up the pen and signed his name. “I guess that means I get to call you Shishou,” he said. 

“If you want to be fed to Manda,” Orochimaru said. 

Kakashi was pretty sure he was kidding. Maybe. He handed the papers back once he’d signed them all; Orochimaru accepted them and handed him a scroll in return. He opened it to reveal a list of names and fingerprints, with the most recent being Anko’s. He pricked his thumb and used the blood to sign his name and fingerprints. He’d seen his father perform summonings countless times, had even mimicked him as a child, so Kakashi flashed through the signs and slammed his hand against the ground without a second thought. 

“Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” 

When the cloud of smoke cleared, three snakes sat on the ground in front of him, coiled together so that it was hard to tell where one began and another ended. 

Their tongues flicked out as they rose up and met his eyes. 

Kakashi bowed his head. “My name is Kakashi Hatake. Nice to meet you.” 

“Sage,” hissed one, with spiky, yellow scales that turned to brown at the tips. 

“Basil,” hissed the second, which Kakashi thought was black until it shifted and he noticed that its scales had a rainbow sheen. 

“Thyme,” hissed the third, which was grey, with a brown vertical stripe and horizontal bands of black all down its body. 

“Please take care of me,” he said. 

The snakes hissed happily. “How polite,” Sage said. 

The other two disappeared in a puff of smoke, but Sage slithered over to him and coiled around his arm. “I will remain with you,” the snake said. 

He helped Orochimaru return the equipment to the lab, and then bid the man goodnight and headed home. 

“Sage,” he said, as he walked, “can you go back to the lab and tell me when Orochimaru leaves?” 

“I will,” Sage said, and the snake slithered down to the ground and was quickly out of sight. 

He didn’t expect to see Sage again until the early hours of the morning, but to his surprise the snake returned just as he was opening the gate to his house. “What happened?” 

“Orochimaru left the laboratory as I approached,” Sage reported. “He went to a large building and met a woman who smelled of medicines and slugs.” 

Kakashi smiled to himself. Of course—Orochimaru left when Kakashi and Anko were both out eating dinner, and not likely to return for some time. He likely only returned when his snakes sent word that Kakashi or Anko were approaching the lab. 

Mystery solved. 

The next day, Kakashi and Anko came prepared. They left the laboratory in the evening, as usual, but waited nearby until Thyme brought word that Orochimaru had left. They gave him five minutes, then returned to the laboratory and settled in to wait. 

It took ten minutes for Orochimaru to return to the lab. 

Anko gave him an exaggerated pout. “Sensei, where were you? We’ve been waiting forever!” 

Kakashi nodded sagely. “It’s irresponsible to leave the lab for so long, Shishou.” 

Orochimaru gave them a look that said he wasn’t sure whether he wanted to be amused or turn them into snake food. Anko grinned unrepentantly, and even Kakashi couldn’t help but smirk a little. 

“What do you want?” Orochimaru asked. 

“My father is busy,” Kakashi said, which was only a little bit of a lie. Sakumo was, in fact, busy teaching Obito how to make katsudon. 

“My father is also busy,” Anko said, which was a complete lie. 

Orochimaru knew it, too. “You’re an orphan,” he said drily. 

Anko widened her eyes and pouted harder. “I’m hungry, sensei.” 

“If I feed you, will you stop attempting to sneak into my laboratory at all hours of the night?” Orochimaru said. 

Kakashi and Anko exchanged glances. “So long as you feed us, we will stop attempting to sneak into your laboratory,” Kakashi said. 

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes. Kakashi stared back. 

“You may spend no more than 100 ryo,” Orochimaru said. 

Anko cheered. 

***

Nagato should have known. 

He should have known that Hanzo couldn’t be trusted. And now Konan was in danger—still screaming at him to leave, didn’t she know he couldn’t do that—and he’d been told to kill Yahiko to save her. 

He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t let Konan die—but he couldn’t kill Yahiko either. 

He stared down at the kunai. The tip of it shook along with his hand. 

He looked up at Hanzo and the shinobi from Konoha standing next to him. The sight of that symbol made that cursed hatred boil up inside of him. Of course Konoha would be behind this; they knew that they profited from the war. Why would they ever want an end to war? 

“Nagato. Kill me.” 

Nagato looked at Yahiko in shock. Of course he couldn’t kill Yahiko. He would rather die himself. 

His blood rushed in his ears. 

“Nagato!” 

“No, don’t do it!” Konan. He couldn’t let Konan die. 

“You had better hurry. Unless you wa—gah!” 

Nagato jerked his head up to look at Hanzo—had Konan managed to escape? 

Konan wasn’t in Hanzo’s grip anymore, that was for sure. Instead she was slung over the shoulder of a woman with blond hair in a long ponytail. Her face was hidden from view behind a fox mask, like the kind they sold at festival stalls, and she wore a standard, black shinobi uniform that could have been from any village. 

“Mwahaha!” she cackled. “The Fox Goddess has captured the princess!” 

They all stared at her. Even Hanzo seemed shocked by her appearance. 

“Danzo!” she exclaimed, pointing a finger at the man standing beside Hanzo. “What would the Hokage think about this?” 

“He knows,” Danzo said. 

She jabbed her thumb towards the ground. “Pull the other one, old man!” 

Danzo signaled the ANBU behind him, and they dashed at the woman. In a flash, she was gone. 

“Yo! Nagato!” Nagato spun around to find the woman standing in a tree behind them, still holding Konan over one shoulder. As his eyes met the eyes of her fox mask, she saluted him. 

Yahiko glanced at him. “You know this lady?” 

Nagato could only shake his head. He had never seen her in his life. 

The fox mask grinned at him. “You better hurry if you want your princess back!” 

With that, she was off again, leaping into the trees. Yahiko surged forwards, running after her without a second thought for Hanzo and Danzo, and Nagato followed him. In the distance, he could see the fox woman running along the ground and leaping from tree to tree, never stopping. 

He was gasping for breath, his clothing soaked in sweat, by the time he and Yahiko ran into a clearing to find themselves face-to-mask with the stranger. Both he and Yahiko fell into offensive stances, ready to fight, only for the stranger to bend down and led Konan down. Konan ran to them and threw her arms around them.

A puff of smoke erupted from the stranger, obscuring their vision. Nagato expected the woman to be gone when it cleared, but instead he found himself staring at a man with blue eyes and short blond hair, a fox mask pulled to the side. 

He grinned at them. “Sorry, sorry! I didn’t want to lie to you or anything, but it’d be a pain if Danzo realized who I was.” 

“Who are you?” Yahiko demanded; he was still on edge after their meeting with the strange, plant-like creature that had approached them out of the blue. “What do you want?” 

“Nothing at all!” the man declared. 

Yahiko glowered at him. “Everyone wants something. Especially people from villages like yours.” 

Nagato’s eyes landed on the man’s headband, which had previously been hidden beneath the fox mask. For a moment, he thought it was a Konoha symbol, but then he realized the point was missing. The man was from Uzushio—almost as bad as Konoha, really, for all that Uzushio was a small village like Ame. It was counted among the Six Great Shinobi Villages for a reason. 

“I’m just a fan of Akatsuki’s work,” the man said. “You want to bring peace to the world, right?” 

“And let me guess, you have a great way for us to bring peace,” Yahiko said. 

“Nope, I have no better ideas than you,” the man said. “I’m just saving the people important to me, and the people important to the people to me, and the people important to them. And hopefully they’ll save some people too.” 

“Some people would say that’s a foolish way of bringing peace,” Yahiko said. 

“Some people would say that what you’re doing is foolish too,” the man said. “But we’re gonna keep doing it, right? Because . . . if any kind of peace exists, I’ll grab hold of it and never let go.” 

Nagato’s eyes widened. “Jiraiya-sensei’s book?” 

The man rubbed the back of his head, smiling sheepishly. “What can I say? He’s a friend of mine. And if you guys died, it’d make him really sad. And I think that if you guys stick to the right path, you really can bring peace to the world. Anyways, uh, that’s all I really had to say. Don’t trust Hanzo or Danzo. They’re bad news. And take care of each other!” 

Before any of them could stop him, he ran off, using shadow clones to confuse the trail. 

Yahiko took a deep breath. 

“Yahiko.” 

Even Nagato was surprised that he had spoken; as Yahiko’s eyes met his, however, he knew what he had to say. “Don’t ever ask me to kill you again. And Konan. Don’t ever tell us to leave you behind.” 

Konan nodded, a tremulous smile on her lips. After a moment, the corners of Yahiko’s mouth turned up as well. “Got it. So, time to plan our next steps. We need a new hideout—a better hideout—and we need to deal with Hanzo, once and for all.” 

Konan and Nagato nodded as Yahiko continued talking, laying out his ideas for their feedback. 

Anyone would say that it was foolish to face down Hanzo the Salamander, especially when he had Konoha’s special forces at his back. But no matter how foolish it was, Nagato wouldn’t stop pursuing peace. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Your comments are all wonderful. No updates for the rest of the week, I'm afraid, since I'm doing a bit of traveling. See you Monday!


	14. Chapter 14

Less than a month after the war ended, Sarutobi stepped down, and Minato was inaugurated as Hokage. The majority of the village was overjoyed at the news; Minato had made a name for himself during the war, and was as beloved by the people as he was feared by their enemies. The day of his inauguration quickly turned into a festival, with travelers from around the Land of Fire coming to take part. 

As the village celebrated, Narumi gathered in a bar with the group of people who had come to be his friends in this time. Jiraiya, back in the village for Minato’s appointment, was the first to arrive, with Tsunade and Dan not far behind. The four of them snagged a table before the bar got too crowded, and Sakumo arrived shortly after. 

“Shots for everyone!” Jiraiya declared, flagging down a waitress. 

“Shots, really, Jiraiya?” Sakumo groaned. 

“My student just became Hokage. If that doesn’t call for shots, I don’t know what does!” 

“None for me,” Tsunade said. 

Jiraiya gaped at her. Tsunade and Dan beamed back. “Another one?” Jiraiya exclaimed. “One wasn’t enough?” 

“It’s long past time Kogane had a sibling,” Dan said. He put a hand over Tsunade’s and gave her a small smile. 

Jiraiya made a disgusted noise. “Dan has to drink for both of you, then.” 

The waitress placed shots in front of each of them. Sakumo grimaced, but downed his as quickly as possible. Narumi followed his example; after so much time with Jiraiya, he was easily able to ignore the burn of the alcohol. Jiraiya went for his next, only for it to be promptly snatched out of his hand. 

“Hey!” Jiraiya protested, only to be promptly silenced by Orochimaru’s glower. 

Orochimaru downed both of Dan’s shots in quick succession, and then took a seat next to Jiraiya. 

“What crawled up your ass and died? Your kids giving you trouble?” Jiraiya said, as he waved down the waitress again. 

“They are not,” Orochimaru hissed, “my kids.” 

Jiraiya, showing a remarkable lack of self-preservation, slung an arm around Orochimaru’s shoulder. Narumi glanced at Orochimaru’s darkening expression and tried to figure out how quickly he would need to run when Orochimaru snapped. 

“He’s just pissed Hiruzen didn’t make him Hokage,” Tsunade said.

The shot glass in Orochimaru’s hand shattered. 

Sakumo only laughed. Apparently Jiraiya’s lack of self-preservation was catching. “Come on, you didn’t really think he was going to make you Hokage. If he was going to pick one of us, he’d pick . . . Tsunade. She’s a Senju. Or Dan, he’s wanted the hat forever.” 

“I would have to refuse,” Dan said, and sipped at his shot. Narumi had no idea how he could stand drinking them like that, and he didn’t want to know. “The hospital won’t run itself.” 

“The medical school would fall apart in three days without me,” Tsunade said. 

“Well, Jiraiya wouldn’t make a good Hokage, for obvious reasons,” Sakumo said, ignoring Jiraiya’s protests. “So that means even out of us, you’d be . . . third choice. And come on. Ever since that flee on sight order, we knew what was coming. So what’s really got you bothered?” 

“Namikaze,” Orochimaru snapped, “is going to cut my funding.” 

The table burst into laughter. “Your funding?” Jiraiya howled. “You’re worried about funding?” 

“I am working on several delicate projects at the moment,” Orochimaru said. 

“I don’t think Minato gives a shit about your funding,” Jiraiya said. 

“Which is exactly why he is going to cut it. To improve the academy, or build new apartment buildings.” Orochimaru’s sneer said exactly what he thought of that venture. 

“The academy could do with an overhaul,” Sakumo mused. “You know they don’t even teach kids how to walk on water anymore? They only teach them how to walk up trees.” 

“More civilians have been entering the academy,” Dan said. “Most children from shinobi families arrive knowing the basics of channeling chakra. Civilian children don’t have that advantage. But I do agree; the academy curriculum is laughably out of date. Kogane’s textbook still said that Tsubasa Uzumaki was the Uzukage. Their teacher had to supplement the textbook with his own lectures and extra material.” 

“The academy has always been a waste of time,” Orochimaru said. “There is nothing there that can’t be taught to oneself.” 

Jiraiya rolled his eyes and elbowed him. “We can’t all be geniuses.” 

“Even you only spent a year in the academy,” Orochimaru said. “Four years is unnecessary.” 

“We also spent a lot more time learning from Sensei,” Jiraiya said. “Kids these days, they spend, what, a couple years with their genin team?” 

“Kakashi had his team for three,” Sakumo said.

Jiraiya waved a hand. “They were all chuunin after a year or two. At that point, it’s a chuunin squad, not a genin team. Doesn’t count.” 

“Four years is still unnecessary. They waste time teaching them how to arrange flowers and about the history of the nations, when they could easily learn those things on their own,” Orochimaru said. 

“The kunoichi classes are bullshit, I’ll give you that,” Tsunade said. 

“Didn’t you get out of them after the first week?” Dan said. 

“Yep. Punched the teacher in the gut,” Tsunade said fondly. 

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. “They’re kids, Orochimaru.” 

“They are shinobi,” Orochimaru said. “I have never once needed to know how to arrange flowers.” 

“Sakumo has!” Jiraiya declared triumphantly. 

“Oh, please, no,” Sakumo groaned. “Let’s not relive that.” 

“So here we were,” Jiraiya said, quickly adapting the air of a story-teller. “Myself, Tsubame-chan, and Sakumo.” 

Sakumo stared into his glass in despair. Narumi patted his shoulder. “It’ll be over soon.” 

“Now, the three of us had been tasked with infiltrating some illegal drug operation, killing the leader, and taking off with the merchandise,” Jiraiya said. “Tsubame, as the prettiest and most distracting, was tasked with finding a way to get to the leader . . . only to end up fighting with a bunch of nobles who were harassing some girl and getting arrested by civilian cops.” 

“And he let them arrest him?” Tsunade said. 

“He was kind of preoccupied making sure the girl was okay, and then it turned out she was a cop in disguise, and she slapped handcuffs on him for fighting in the streets before he could think to get away!” Jiraiya chortled. “Anyways, that left just Sakumo and I to find a way to get in. Sakumo decided to just sneak inside and see what he could find. And so Sakumo had just gotten over the fence and landed in the garden when a whole host of servants appeared. And so they look at him, and he looks at them, and then one of them goes, ‘Oh, you must be the master flower arranger!’ See, turns out this crime lord was getting married, and he’d hired a guy to do all the flowers.” 

“Please, let’s stop here,” Sakumo said, and was ignored. 

“So Sakumo is like, oh, yeah, I am absolutely a master flower arranger, so they take him into the mansion, but they don’t take him to the crime lord—they take him to the crime lord’s  _ mother _ . This tiny, wrinkled old lady about a hundred years old. So Sakumo ends up sitting there for hours, arranging flowers in front of this horrible old woman who would smack his hands with her cane whenever she didn’t like the flower arrangement. Anyways, he ends up managing to make some arrangement that insults her horribly, and she accuses him of planning to ruin the wedding—and the door opens, and the crime lord walks in. And you know who the crime lord was?” 

“No,” Sakumo groaned. 

“The crime lord was none less than a target on a previous mission who Sakumo had seduced for information!” Jiraiya howled. All of them, bar Sakumo, burst into laughter. “So Sakumo’s sitting there, surrounded by flowers, staring down this crime lord, who’s just staring back at him. Before Sakumo could high-tail it out of there, the man throws himself at Sakumo’s feet and wraps his arms around his waist and declares, ‘My love! You have returned to me at last!’ You see—” He broke off laughing for a moment before recovering. “See, it turns out Sakumo was a little too good at this whole seduction thing, and the guy had fallen madly in love with him only to be absolutely heartbroken when Sakumo departed in the dead of night.” 

“Sakumo, you heartbreaker,” Tsunade cackled. 

Sakumo made a noise like a dying animal. 

“So this crime lord sweeps Sakumo off his feet—literally, it was pretty impressive actually—and declares to his mother, ‘Mother, this is the man I love! This wedding is cancelled!’ And the mother—you know what the mother says? She says that she has put way too much work into this wedding for it to be canceled, and that he’ll just have to marry Sakumo instead! So now the whole household is in a fuss because clearly Sakumo needs a whole new wardrobe for the wedding, and they still need the flowers, and in all the chaos I was able to sneak through the house and get the information I needed about the merchandise. So I left the mansion, and went to get the merchandise. No idea what happened next, Sakumo was too pissed that I was there and didn’t do anything to help him to tell me.” 

“You were spying on me through the window!” 

Jiraiya waved a hand dismissively. “You had it handled. Anyways, I got the merchandise and bailed Tsubame out of jail, and then the two of us went back to the mansion to see if Sakumo needed any help. We slipped in and had a look around, only to find Sakumo having the time of his life!” 

“It was horrible,” Sakumo said. 

“You were lying in his lap eating tiny cakes and drinking champagne!”

“I was acting!” 

“You were lounging around drinking and eating and getting pampered while poor Tsubame was sitting in a cell with a bunch of thugs who looked like they could have squished his head like an overripe peach,” Jiraiya said. “Anyways, Sakumo looked like he had the crime lord well in hand, so we decided to investigate a little more, make sure we got everything we needed.” 

“That was, without a doubt, the worst support on a mission I have ever received,” Sakumo said. 

“Anyways, Tsubame and I did some digging, got some really juicy information on the guy and his associates, and by that point it was getting late so we decided it was about time we got a move on. So we went back to look for Sakumo, but he was nowhere to be found. Tsubame could still sense him, though, so we got to tracking, and eventually found him having a romantic moonlit picnic on the outskirts of town!” 

Jiraiya spread his arms wide. “Picture it. A hilltop dotted with a few trees and a whole lot of flowers. The stars overhead. I think even a couple shooting stars, it was that perfect. A blanket spread on the ground, some really expensive champagne, a whole basket full of little goodies. This massive, muscular crime lord giving Sakumo the sappiest look I’ve seen outside of Tsunade and Dan. And then, as we watched, he started to choke and wheeze, and a few seconds later, he was dead!” 

“Poison in the champagne,” Sakumo said. “Very tragic.” 

“With that, the mission was over, so we took the picnic and made our way home,” Jiraiya concluded. 

“Your example is irrelevant,” Orochimaru said. “Sakumo didn’t really need to know flower arranging, he just had to pretend he did.” 

Jiraiya threw his hands in the air. “That’s what you got out of this story?” 

Narumi laughed and looked at Sakumo, who had downed his glass of alcohol and looked slightly more cheerful for it. “Now I’m curious about the first mission with the crime lord.” 

“That’s for me to know, and none of you to ever find out,” Sakumo said. 

Narumi looked at Jiraiya. Jiraiya shrugged. “That one was a solo mission. I already told you everything I know. I have one about Orochimaru, though—” 

“You are not telling them that,” Orochimaru said. 

As the other side of the table descended into chaos, Narumi watched Sakumo as he stared wistfully into his glass. He caught Narumi looking, after a moment, and smiled slightly. “I told Kaede about that solo mission,” he said quietly. “She used to tease me mercilessly about it. She always said that on our wedding day, my crime lord lover would put a stop to the wedding and sweep me off my feet, and then she’d have to fight him for me. When I told her about the second mission she was so disappointed she wouldn’t get to duel anyone at the wedding.” 

“Wait, is that why she kept challenging people to spar at the afterparty?”

Sakumo laughed. “Yeah, it was. I think everyone thought she was joking, though.” 

A peanut sailed between them. “No private conversations!” Jiraiya declared. “Drink up, boys.” 

“Yeah, if private conversations were allowed, Jiraiya would be stuck talking to Orochimaru, and then we’d end up getting kicked out,” Tsunade said. 

A waitress came around and delivered another round of drinks, which they all dutifully sipped as Jiraiya urged them on. Narumi had no idea what Jiraiya had ordered them, but it was definitely strong. 

“I’m going to regret this in the morning,” Sakumo sighed as he took another gulp. “At least Obito is always late. I don’t envy you, Orochimaru.” 

“Hangovers are inefficient. I concocted my own cure long ago,” Orochimaru said. 

Noise from the street resounded through the bar as the door opened to admit a gang of teenagers. Kakashi, Obito, Rin, and Kogane, each of them dressed in yukata and bearing festival masks, walked through the doors. Anko was with them, as was a dark-haired girl who eventually Narumi recognized as a young Shizune. The group made a beeline for their table, not sparing a glance at the tables of drunken ninja around them. 

“Dad,” Kakashi called over the din of the bar. “Give me more money.” 

“Ask Narumi-ji-san,” Sakumo said. “Dad’s all out.” 

“Ji-san, can I have some money for the festival?” Kakashi said. 

Narumi had to admit it—his heart melted a little. It was amazing how cute Kakashi could make puppy-eyes look when he was wearing a mask and had his headband covering one eye. “Yeah, okay,” he said, opening his wallet and pulling out a handful of bills. “How’s this?” 

Kakashi’s eye crinkled in a smile. “Thanks, ji-san!” 

Sakumo leaned in to whisper in his ear. “How much did you give him?” 

“No idea.” 

“Shishou! Shishou!” Obito yelled. “Can I have some pocket money?” 

“You too?” Sakumo grumbled. Obito grinned at him unrepentantly. Sakumo sighed, opened his wallet, and pulled out a few bills. “Don’t spend it all at once.” 

“I knew you had money,” Kakashi said. 

“Me too!” Anko declared. “Sensei, I need money too! Are gonna let Obito’s shishou make you look like a bad sensei?” 

“Your attempts at manipulation are childish and clumsy. Work on them.” Nevertheless, Orochimaru handed money to Anko and Kakashi both. Anko whooped with glee and Kakashi grinned behind his mask. 

“You need money too?” Tsunade asked Kogane, already pulling out her wallet. 

“I have enough,” Kogane said. 

“It’s not like I’m buying anything,” she said. “Can’t drink with the pregnancy.” 

“Of course,” Kogane said. He took a moment to absorb what she had said, and then his eyes widened. “Pregnancy?” 

“Yep. You’ll have a little sibling in a few months. Here, go have fun.” Tsunade pressed a stack of bills into his hands. Kogane stared blankly at the money. 

“Here, Shizune,” Dan said, handing his niece some money as well. “Are you having fun at the festival?” 

Shizune smiled at him. “Lots of fun, Ji-san.” 

“Keep an eye on these knuckleheads,” Tsunade said. “They need it.” 

“Ah, let the kids have some fun, Tsunade!” Jiraiya declared. “Here, let Ji-san give you all some money. There you go, there you go. Now scram.” 

Once Jiraiya had given money to each of them, even Rin, the children dashed out the door, already loudly discussing what games to play and what food stalls to visit next. Narumi watched them go fondly; it was a little strange, being on this end of the equation, but he kind of liked it. 

“Time flies too quickly,” Sakumo said mournfully. “Kakashi, Dad wants to go to the festival too!” 

He slumped over, resting his head on the table. “You’re drunk,” Jiraiya said as he slid over another drink. 

Narumi slid it back across the table and poured a cup of water instead. Across the bar, someone made a joking toast to “Kushina, the real Fourth Hokage!” Jiraiya turned around to throw peanuts at them. Orochimaru poured something in Jiraiya’s drink while his back was turned. The small skirmish between Jiraiya and the other table spread when they hit Tsunade with peanuts, and somehow Narumi ended up under the table with Sakumo, sipping at glasses of water while peanuts and dango sticks flew overhead. 

Both tables ended up getting kicked out of the bar; the fight dissolved once the door shut behind them, and the other group wandered off, presumably to another bar. Orochimaru vanished pretty much immediately, and Jiraiya wandered off in the direction of the red light district. Dan and Tsunade went off together, either to have a romantic dinner or have sex, leaving Sakumo and Narumi alone. 

“Well, I’m starved,” Sakumo said. “Man cannot live on peanuts and alcohol alone.” 

Narumi peered down the streets. “The food stalls are this way,” he said. “Want to check them out?” 

“Your words are music to my ears.” 

The two of them wandered the streets, chuckling at the young genin and chuunin trying their hand at the festival games. Narumi was pretty sure he caught sight of Kakashi trying to fish up a yo-yo. Eventually, they found their way to the area where all the food stalls had set up shop and wandered between them, accepting the occasional free sample when it was offered. 

They settled on a stall that was crowded enough to show that it was good, but not so crowded they would be waiting hours for their food. The menu included a variety of foods, from yakisoba to yakitori, and they discussed what looked best while waiting for their turn. 

“Next!” the man running the stall called, and the two of them stepped up to order. 

Sakumo pulled out his wallet and reached in for his money. “I’ll have . . .” He blinked at his empty hand, and then looked at his wallet, also empty, and gave a startled laugh. “I forgot, I gave all my money to the kids.” 

“Shit, me too,” Narumi realized, and quickly opened his wallet to check how much he had. He squinted at his money, and then at the menu. “I have enough for . . . a yakisoba. How large is that?”

The yakisoba came in fairly large servings, as it turned out. “One yakisoba and two pairs of chopsticks. We can split it,” he told Sakumo. 

Once their food was ready, the two of them found a seat on a nearby bench and held the yakisoba between them as they ate. 

“I haven’t done this since I was a kid,” Sakumo chuckled. 

Narumi took a bite and thought back. “I don’t think I’ve ever done this.” As a kid, he hadn’t had any friends to share food with, and oftentimes at festivals the stall owners would run him off. By the time he had people he could actually call friends, they were all old enough that they had a steady supply of money from their missions. 

“You grew up in the country, right?” Sakumo asked. “Did you go to festivals in the city as a kid?” 

“Oh, yeah. When I was traveling with my teacher, a lot of the time we’d end up in a town or a city that was having a festival. He’d give me some money and let me run around while he visited the bars,” Narumi said. Jiraiya, in that regard, hadn’t really changed much. 

“I used to do the same thing with my genin team,” Sakumo said. “We liked to beat the festival games until they wouldn’t let us play anymore. They used to only have games for civilians—recently they’ve added an area full of games more geared towards shinobi. Nets and strings that break more easily, bottles that are harder to knock over, things like that. I remember the first time I lost a carnival game I was so shocked I had to sit down.” 

Narumi had fond memories of accusing various stall owners of rigging their games. “I used to prank them if I thought they’d cheated,” he said, and ended up regaling Sakumo with tales of his pranks that had the man laughing so hard he almost upended their yakisoba. 

Between the two of them, they polished off the yakisoba quickly. Narumi went to throw the empty container away, and returned to find Sakumo gazing up at the night sky. At Narumi’s approach, Sakumo looked over and smiled at him. “Should we go find the kids? It’s getting late.” 

“Sounds good,” Narumi said. “Any idea where they are?” 

“Probably a park or a training ground,” Sakumo said. 

They wandered through the village, not in too much of a rush, and ended up finding Kakashi and Obito lying fast asleep in an empty playground. A paper bag half-full of clementines and half-full of clementine peels sat between them, and their spoils of war lay scattered around them.

Sakumo hoisted Kakashi onto his back, while Narumi did the same with Obito, and together they made their way back to Sakumo’s house. 

An explosion resounded through the village, and both of them jerked in surprise, instantly ready for an attack. Lights lit up the sky, and Sakumo’s serious expression melted into joy. He turned to Narumi with a grin, the bright lights in the sky reflected in his eyes. “Fireworks!” 

A flower exploded in the sky above them, followed by a pinwheel and then an Uchiha fan. Narumi laughed at that. “I think we know who’s in charge of the fireworks now.” 

They kept their faces turned towards the sky as they continued walking. “The kids must be tired to sleep through this,” Sakumo said. 

Narumi adjusted his grip on Obito, who had started to snore softly. “Tired and full of clementines.” 

“Did I ever tell you about the time Kakashi ate so many clementines he made himself sick?” 

“No, you didn’t.” 

“He was, oh, about four or five, and I bought a big bag of them from a farm. He ate so many he threw up, and then went right back to eating them again.” 

“I did the same thing with cup ramen when I was about six,” Narumi said. 

“Did they have those when we were kids?” Sakumo wondered. “I thought they were pretty recent.” 

Narumi chuckled sheepishly, too used to making small slips like that to feel too worried about it. “You got me. I did that just recently.” 

“They are pretty good. Just don’t tell Kushina I said that. She thinks they’re a blight on the earth,” Sakumo said.

“Well, compared to Ichiraku,” Narumi said. 

“Kushina makes a pretty killer bowl of ramen herself. You should ask her to make you some while you’re in town.” Sakumo glanced over at him. “When are you heading back?” 

An Uzumaki spiral exploded in the air. “Not sure. Tsubame hasn’t gotten back to me yet; he knows things have been crazy over here, with Rin’s seal and all. Konoha wants me on hand in case anything goes wrong.” 

“Makes sense,” Sakumo said. “That’s good. I’m sure Kakashi will be happy to spend some time with his ji-san.” 

“Just Kakashi?” Narumi teased. 

Sakumo laughed and bumped into Narumi playfully. “He likes having more than one adult to ask for pocket money.” 

They made it to Sakumo’s house at long last. Sakumo tucked Kakashi into his bed, then set up the spare futon on the floor so Narumi could put Obito down, and then the two of them retreated and left the boys to sleep. 

“Want some tea before you go?” Sakumo asked, as he put away the stash of festival prizes and snacks the boys had gathered. “We can eat the rest of Kakashi’s clementines.” 

“Sure, thanks,” Narumi said. 

He hadn’t had much of a taste for tea when he was younger, but he had grown to like it as he had gotten older, particularly because Sakumo was so fond of it. The two of them gathered at the table, leaving the door open to let in the summer breeze, and Sakumo poured them both cups of tea that they sipped at while chatting and peeling clementines. By the time they ran out of tea and all the clementines had been peeled, the first rays of sun were just starting to peek over the horizon.

“You’re welcome to stay instead of going back to wherever you’re staying,” Sakumo said. “I have another spare futon. Kakashi makes a mean breakfast.” 

“By the time I’m ready to wake up, I think it’ll be more like lunch,” Narumi laughed. 

The two of them stood, cleaned off the table, and made their way to Sakumo’s room to set up the futon. “You say that like he’ll give you a chance to sleep in when we could be training,” Sakumo said. “And with Obito here we’ll be lucky if they don’t burn the house down before eight.” 

“Still more sleep than we ever got in Kiri,” Narumi said. 

“Ugh, don’t remind me. My back aches just thinking about those trees,” Sakumo said. 

“Or you’re getting old,” Narumi teased. 

“You’re not that much younger than me. If I’m old, you’re old.” 

A yawn interrupted Narumi before he could retort. “Well, I dunno about you, but this old man is going to sleep,” he said. Narumi crawled under into the futon, as next to him Sakumo did the same, and fell asleep in a heartbeat. 

***

Obito’s tongue poked out of the corner of his mouth as he very, very carefully ran the brush over his chosen canvas, drawing swirls and lines in sweeps of dark paint. Beside him, Kakashi did the same. Obito surveyed Kakashi’s work critically. “You should add some spirals.” 

“Spirals? Why?” Kakashi said. 

“ _ You know _ .” Obito waggled his eyebrows. 

Kakashi made a disgusted face. “I still think you’re wrong,” he said, but Obito noted he drew the spirals. 

“I’m totally right,” Obito said. 

“We had a sleepover and it didn’t mean anything,” Kakashi said. 

Obito fumbled his brush, accidentally drawing a stripe of paint right through some of his other designs. His canvas flinched and blinked. “Whoops,” Obito said, and quickly scrambled back. “Mission compromised! Run, Bakashi!” 

Kakashi jumped up and followed him to the door, leaving Narumi and Sakumo blinking sleepily after them, paint all over their faces. Obito and Kakashi left the evidence of their crime where they had found it, in Sakumo’s office, and raced off to the training ground before the adults could figure out what they had done. 

They kept running even when they left Kakashi’s house, less to get away from any potential retribution and more to see who would reach their training ground first. Obito won, but only by a few seconds—Kakashi was still getting used to his new limbs, and Obito had no doubt that within the next few months Kakashi would be beating him handily. 

He was already getting faster in their spars. Before, Obito had been able to counter him easily, but now they were more evenly matched. He’d be struggling to keep up again in no time; Kakashi trained like a demon and was determined not to be held back by the artificial limbs grafted to his body. 

He was already using little Mokuton tricks to trip up Obito, sending little vines to snag at his ankles at just the right moment. Every time he ate dirt made him hate the Hashirama trees a little more. 

“You can use your Sharingan, you know. I don’t mind,” Kakashi said. 

Obito hesitated. He actually didn’t use his Sharingan all that much. He’d played around with it a little, before Kakashi had returned, training with Sakumo as the man pushed him until his Sharingan was fully mature. He’d had a bit of fun looking at chakra patterns, at least until he realized it freaked people out when he stared at them with the Sharingan. Since the incident with Rin, when they’d found Kakashi, he hadn’t really used it. He’d been in the village, for one, and hadn’t been in any battles that required him to use the Sharingan. And the last time that he had used it, with Rin—he’d been able to see what would happen, and still knew he wouldn’t be able to stop. He still saw Rin’s death in his nightmares. He knew it hadn’t actually happened, but sometimes it still felt like it had. 

He had to get over it some time, though. “Yeah. If you’re sure you can handle it, Bakashi,” Obito said, with an arrogance he didn’t really feel. 

Kakashi rolled his eye and darted back into the fight without another word. 

Obito activated his sharingan as he countered Kakashi’s first punch. He could see Kakashi’s movements coming before they happened, although he wasn’t always fast enough to counter them perfectly. He could see as Kakashi’s chakra shifted and surged as he manipulated the trees around them, and was able to dodge the plants before they even burst through the ground. 

When they finally stopped, both of them were out of breath, covered in sweat, and halfway to chakra exhaustion. They made their way through cool-down exercises slowly. 

“I didn’t know the Sharingan had another level,” Kakashi said. 

“Huh? Oh, yeah, the final form has three tomoe,” Obito said. 

“I know that. I meant the form yours has now. It looks different from the other Sharingan,” Kakashi said. 

“No, it doesn’t,” Obito said. “It has three tomoe, that’s all.” 

“Yes, it does,” Kakashi insisted. “It doesn’t have three tomoe. It looks different. Don’t you ever look in a mirror?” 

“Not with my Sharingan,” Obito said irritably, even as he pulled out his tanto to look at his reflection in the blade. He activated his Sharingan and nearly jerked back in surprise—Kakashi was right. It really was different. 

“There’s not supposed to be another form of the Sharingan,” Obito said hesitantly. There wasn’t, not officially, but there were always . . . rumors. Things that the clan elders mentioned when they thought no one was listening, or that the adults talked about when they met up late at night. 

“So ask your elders,” Kakashi said. 

Obito snorted. First of all, the elders didn’t like to tell anyone anything—especially not him. Second, “I, uh, never actually told them. That I awakened the Sharingan.” 

“And they never figured it out?” Kakashi said skeptically. 

“I never use it around other Uchiha!” Obito flailed his arms in some vain attempt to illustrate his point. “I don’t spend that much time with them, I think they’ve pretty much given up on me. And it’s not like you have to tell them, it’s just that most people brag about awakening it when they do. And I . . . even if I had someone to brag to in the clan, I wasn’t really in the mood after what happened.” 

“And you can’t just tell them now?” Kakashi said. 

Obito grimaced. On the list of things he wanted to do, talking to the elders listed just below visiting the dentist. Still, there were ways around these things. “I guess I could take a look in the compound. They have records there. Things that can tell me what this is.” 

He had his suspicions. But he didn’t want them to be true. 

“Meet me here,” Obito said, already walking away from the training grounds. “If I don’t come, assume I’m getting lectured by the elders or something.” 

“Should I come find you?” 

“Not unless you can think of a way it wouldn’t be suspicious,” Obito said. “Like get us a mission or something, that way they’ll have to let me go!” 

“I’ll make a plan,” Kakashi said, determination clear in his eyes.

Kakashi was kind of stuck-up sometimes, but Obito liked that about him—that Kakashi would do anything for a friend. “Cool. I’ll see you later!” 

Most people might think that the best time to sneak into a place you weren’t supposed to be was the middle of the night, but at least in the Uchiha clan, that was rarely the case. At night, the police were on high alert, especially because most of the clan was asleep, not to mention that the clan elders and adults sometimes had secret meetings late at night. Sneaking around late at night was a surefire way to look suspicious. On the other hand, during the day most people were busy enough that they wouldn’t pay another Uchiha a second glance, especially not Obito. Even if he was caught, he could just pretend he was lost. 

If this was the Mangekyo, there had to be records on it somewhere—and he had a feeling he knew where to look. 

Naka Shrine was deserted at this time of day—even the people who usually tended to it were off eating lunch. Obito slipped inside unnoticed, and made his way into the secret room beneath the shrine, where the clan kept secret records. 

Obito skimmed through them as quickly as possible, looking over them with his sharingan to memorize the contents and then putting them back exactly where he had found them. Even someone with another Sharingan wouldn’t be able to tell he had been looking through them. 

Obito started, of course, with the oldest records, and quickly struck gold—Madara Uchiha had possessed the Mangekyo, which he had awakened after the death of his father, as had his brother. Obito skimmed the history sections, more focused on looking for the abilities of the Mangekyo. He didn’t find much, other than a few oblique references to things that Uchiha with the Mangekyo had done in battle. 

As he skimmed through one of the few records that kind of talked about the techniques, Obito glanced at his watch and swore. It was just past one, which meant that people might be coming to tend to the shrine soon. He hopped off the stone tablet he had been perched on—probably offending several deities while he was at it—and quickly replaced the papers and scrolls as he had found them before slipping out of the shrine. 

No one was inside the shrine, thankfully, and he breathed a sigh of relief as he stepped outside. 

“And what are you doing, Obito?” 

Obito yelped and whipped around, meeting the eyes of Mikoto Uchiha. “Mikoto-ba-san! Uh, I was playing hide and seek?” he said. 

He could have smacked himself. There was no way she was going to believe that. 

Mikoto’s eyebrows rose, and he braced himself for a scolding. “So you’re the ringleader of this little enterprise.” 

Obito blinked at her, and then slid his eyes down towards the two small forms beside her. Itachi blinked up at him solemnly, while Shisui grinned unrepentantly. “Uh, yeah, sorry, Ba-san,” he said, sheepishly ruffling his hair. “We got a little carried away.” 

“This isn’t a place for playing. You should know better, Obito,” she scolded, and then nudged the two boys towards him. “If you’re so eager to play, you can take them to the park and watch them for me.” 

Obito sighed. So much for his meeting with Kakashi. “Okay, Ba-san. Come on, let’s go.” 

The two boys hurried to catch up to him. Obito slowed his steps slightly; Shisui was seven and faster than Obito when he wanted to be, but Itachi was still only four.

“You weren’t really playing hide and seek, were you?” Shisui asked. 

“Were you?” Obito retorted. Shisui shrugged, which was as good as a confirmation. “You don’t tell on me, and I don’t tell on you. How’s that?” 

“Only if you let us go right now,” Shisui said. 

“Are you crazy? I’m not crossing Mikoto-san. Come on, you can come train with Kakashi and I,” Obito said. 

Even Itachi looked intrigued at that; no doubt he had heard of the other genius. Probably by being endlessly compared to him. At Itachi’s age, Kakashi had been almost ready to graduate from the academy; Itachi wasn’t even enrolled yet, although his father had him training endlessly to make up for it. 

“Yeah, okay,” Shisui said, after a glance at Itachi. “But you have to buy us dinner afterwards!” 

“Dinner? How long do you think I’m putting up with you squirts? Mikoto-san will feed you,” Obito said. “Besides, I’m probably having dinner with Kakashi’s family.” 

“Then we’ll come too!” Shisui declared. 

Obito knocked him upside the head. “Don’t just invite yourself to other people’s gatherings!” 

Shisui laughed and raced ahead; Obito wondered if this was what it had been like to spend time with him when he was younger. Kakashi’s constant irritation was beginning to make sense. 

Kakashi was at the training ground when they finally arrived. Obito suspected he had never even left. He wasn’t training, at least not physically—he was instead reading a book, something about tactics by the look of it. Trust Kakashi to study even when he was already a jounin; it was like he enjoyed making Obito look bad or something. 

“Hey, Bakashi!” he called. “Quit studying, we all know it’s hopeless.” 

“Clearly,” Kakashi replied as he slipped the book away. “I suppose I will be forced to remain a genin all my life.” 

Obito couldn’t help but laugh, even though the joke wasn’t even that funny. There was just something about Kakashi making jokes that got to him—he was so straight-laced all the time. “Imagine being stuck doing D-ranks your whole life.” 

Kakashi’s eye slid over to the two kids. For a moment, Obito feared he would say something about the Sharingan, but he just said, “Your family?” 

Obito grimaced. “Yeah, I got stuck with babysitting duty.” 

“I’m not a baby,” Shisui said. 

Obito grabbed him and gave him a noogie, ignoring his squealed protests. “You’ll stop being a baby when you stop getting caught causing trouble!” 

“You got caught too!” Shisui protested. 

“Did not! That was on purpose,” Obito said. “How else was I supposed to save your sorry butt?” 

“If you’re just going to play, take them to the park,” Kakashi said. 

Obito released Shisui in favor of elbowing Kakashi. “Quit being a jerk, Bakashi. They came to train.” 

Kakashi eyed them skeptically. Obito couldn’t really blame him; Itachi wasn’t even in the academy yet, for all that his dad made him train pretty much every day. He was probably hoping for another Kakashi Hatake. Obito could have told him the world didn’t want or need another Kakashi. One was plenty. 

Eventually, Kakashi shrugged one shoulder. “Great! So, how should we do this? Two on two?” Obito suggested. 

Kakashi looked at Itachi again, and then at Shisui. “How about all three of you against me?” he said. 

Obito wasn’t sure if he wanted to punch him, or agree and kick his ass with Itachi and Shisui. Just when he thought Kakashi was starting to loosen up, he had to be an ass. 

“Kakashi-senpai, may I spar with you?” Itachi asked. 

Kakashi looked at Obito, although Obito couldn’t have said why. Kakashi’s expression was as inscrutable as always. “Sure,” Kakashi said. 

“Guess that leaves you and me together, shrimp,” Obito said to Shisui. “Taijutsu?” 

He was not about to use his tanto and have to explain the results of that to Mikoto. With his luck, he’d end up stabbing Shisui and having to drag him to the hospital. 

Shisui shifted into a taijutsu stance, and in an instant they were exchanging blows. Shisui was good for a genin, Obito had to admit. He was almost too fast for Obito to see without his Sharingan, and his taijutsu was almost flawless. It was a stark reminder that Shisui, for all that he was six years younger than Obito, had also fought in the war. They tried to keep genin away from the worst of the fighting, but that rarely worked out in practice. 

Eventually, they shifted from pure taijutsu to using their tanto as well, although they didn’t draw the weapons from their sheaths. Here, Obito had the advantage, both because of his superior reach and because he’d been spending his days training with the White Fang, Konoha’s resident expert in swordplay. 

They ended their spar with Shisui pinned to the ground, his sword arm trapped underneath him, Obito’s tanto held to his throat. “Nice one,” Obito said, between gasps for breath. “But you’ll have to work a lot harder than that if you want to beat this senpai!” 

“Done?” 

Obito looked over to find Kakashi and Itachi watching, having finished their ever-so-diligent progress through their stretches. “Yeah.” 

Kakashi stood and turned to go. “Come on. Dad will be waiting.” 

Obito fell into step beside him. Shisui and Itachi followed, but didn’t take the turn towards the Uchiha compound. Obito scowled at Shisui, who grinned unrepentantly as he tugged Itachi along by the hand. Itachi, for his part, looked rather embarrassed—it struck Obito as rather comical that of the two, the four-year-old was more dignified. “What do you think you’re doing?” he asked Shisui. 

“Coming for dinner,” Shisui said. 

“No, you aren’t,” Obito said. “Mikoto-ba-san is waiting for Itachi.” 

“No, she isn’t,” Shisui said. “She’s  _ busy _ .” 

_ Busy,  _ Obito knew, meant that the clan elders were planning a meeting. He couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for Itachi, whose parents were always so busy with clan business. Looking at Shisui, he knew this was exactly what the little brat had intended. “Ugh, fine,” he said. “You can stay if Kakashi agrees.” 

_ Please say no, and I’ll never call you Bakashi ever again,  _ Obito silently promised, staring at Kakashi’s face as if this would somehow communicate his intentions. 

Shisui and Itachi looked at each other, a silent conversation passing between them. “Kakashi-senpai, may we come for dinner?” Itachi asked. 

Kakashi looked down at the boy for a moment, considering, before nodding. “You can come.” 

_ Nevermind. You’re Bakashi forever.  _

Resigned to his fate, Obito didn’t protest Shisui’s continued presence. “You’ve gotten good recently,” Shisui remarked. 

Obito blinked in surprise. “Oh, thanks—hey, wait, what’s that supposed to mean? I was always good!” 

“Last time we sparred, I beat you,” Shisui said. 

“That was ages ago! I was a genin.” 

“So? I was an academy student.” 

“Obito works hard. That’s what matters,” Kakashi interrupted. “Some people are just late bloomers. That’s what my father says, at least.” 

“People grow at different rates,” Itachi said, and nodded. “Your father sounds very wise.” 

Kakashi shrugged, but Obito thought he looked kind of pleased under the mask and headband. 

Sakumo, of course, spoiled this initial good impression by launching two buckets of paint at them the moment Kakashi opened the front door, aided by Narumi with his own buckets. Obito couldn’t help but laugh as Kakashi dripped red, orange, and blue paint all over the floor. “Dad,” Kakashi complained. “The tatami.” 

Itachi looked utterly horrified, at least as much as he could. He was frozen stock-still and his eyes were wider than normal; if he was any normal four-year-old, Obito was pretty sure he would have been throwing a tantrum. 

Narumi and Sakumo cackled, arms thrown over each other’s shoulders. 

“We have guests,” Kakashi said again, in a desperate, doomed attempt to make them behave like normal adults. 

Obito grinned and smeared orange paint over Kakashi’s relatively pristine cheek. “Give it a rest, Kakashi. These two troublemakers had it coming anyways.” 

Sakumo attempted to look more serious. “Ah, yes, welcome to my house. Please come in. Don’t worry about the tatami, it’s probably time to replace it anyways.” He turned around and immediately dissolved into muffled laughter. 

Narumi looked at their faces and snorted. “Heh, sorry. Come on in. I’ll run a bath and get some clean clothes.” 

Narumi vanished after Sakumo. Kakashi sighed. “I apologize for my father and godfather, Itachi-kun, Shisui-kun.” 

“It will wash off easily,” Itachi said. 

“Your dad’s cool,” Shisui said. “Imagine Fugaku doing that!” 

Itachi smiled slightly. Obito was certain there wasn’t a more reserved kid on the face of the earth. 

The four of them made their way to the bathroom, Itachi and Kakashi doing their best to avoid dripping paint everywhere, and Obito and Shisui doing their best to splatter each other and the other two. Sakumo, thankfully, had scrounged up clothing for everyone, so once they were all clean they had something to wear, although Itachi was kind of swamped by his borrowed clothes. 

By the time they were out, Sakumo had made dinner for all of them. “I do apologize,” he said, once they were all served and seated. “I didn’t expect the boys to bring back guests.” 

Itachi nodded politely. “Thank you for having me.” 

“It’s okay,” Shisui said. “It was fun!” 

“Sorry about bringing them by with no warning,” Obito said. “Mikoto-san is making me babysit to keep us all out of trouble. Although they weren’t supposed to stay this long.” 

He glared at Shisui. Shisui grinned unrepentantly. 

“I’ll bring them home after dinner and smooth things over with Mikoto-san,” Sakumo promised. 

Dinner passed relatively smoothly, after that, and before too long Sakumo was escorting Shisui and Itachi out of the house. Narumi went to clean up, while Obito and Kakashi retreated to Kakashi’s bedroom. 

Finally, they were alone. 

Obito hastily constructed a fort out of spare blankets and strategically placed kunai and ninja wire while Kakashi stared at him blankly. Once he was done, he seized Kakashi by the arm and dragged him under the fort. 

“Okay, so I think I know what it is,” he said. 

“You realize this does absolutely nothing to prevent people from listening in on our conversation,” Kakashi said. 

Obito rolled his eyes. “Yes, I know, Bakashi. That’s not the point. The point is that I think—I think killing Rin gave me the Mangekyo Sharingan.” 

“You didn’t kill Rin,” Kakashi said. 

“Well, no, but I thought I did.” Obito stared down at his hands. “The moment I realized I couldn’t stop in time it was like—I saw, in an instant, exactly what the world would be like without Rin in it. I thought I really had killed her. That’s what matters.” 

“And what is the Mangekyo Sharingan?” 

“It’s an evolved form of the Sharingan. You get it by . . . by killing someone important to you, or by watching them die. I mean, that’s what the records say,” Obito said. “It has special abilities, things that the normal Sharingan can’t do. But it differs from person to person.” 

“Then, clearly, we have to test them out.” 


	15. Chapter 15

Kakashi and Obito took out a mission, just the two of them, to get away from the village. A simple courier mission, nothing fancy, but it involved going all the way to Uzushio so they wouldn’t be expected back for days. There was plenty of time along the way to find somewhere out of the way to practice. 

“Susanoo . . . anyone can do, so let’s not test that out,” Obito said, as they made their way through the tunnel system they were scoping out for their experiments. “I don’t really want to bring the mountain down on top of us. Each eye has an ability, but it differs from person to person. The records weren’t really clear on that part.” 

“Do you have a plan?” Kakashi asked. 

Obito shrugged. “Just try to activate it and see what happens, I guess. The records aren’t really clear on how to figure out what you can do, so I guess you just do it.” 

The reached a slightly wider area of the caves. “Here should do it . . . unless it turns out I have some really devastating ability that ends up trapping us in here,” Obito said. 

“Activate it away from the exit,” Kakashi said. 

Obito could have smacked himself. “Right. Obviously. Okay, here goes.” 

He activated the Sharingan, accompanied as always by that familiar twinge. He didn’t really know what he was doing, so he just kind of . . . pushed the chakra towards his eye and urged it to activate. 

And suddenly, he just  _ knew _ . 

“Kamui.” 

A portal opened up in front of him; as if in a daze, Obito stepped towards it. He reached a hand out, into the portal, only to be suddenly yanked back by Kakashi. The portal closed as abruptly as it had opened. 

“Be careful,” Kakashi said. 

“Nah, it’s okay, I think,” Obito said. “I’m going through.” 

“I’ll go with you.” 

The look in Kakashi’s eye plainly said he wasn’t taking no for an answer, so Obito just nodded and opened the portal again. He and Kakashi stepped through and entered a strange, black void full of nothing but weird square shapes. 

“It’s kind of . . . boring,” Obito said. 

“Useful,” Kakashi said. “You could store all kinds of things here. Or escape into it during a battle.” 

“Booooring,” Obito said. “All I can do is, what, open up portals to some weird square place?” 

Kakashi was quiet for a moment, clearly thinking. “Can you only open up portals out of her from where you opened them to go in? Or can you open portals anywhere?” 

“Oh. That’s a good question. Hang on, let me try.” 

Obito thought very hard of a place they’d been on a mission once that had been pretty devoid of human life and opened a portal. When stuck his head through, he found himself there instead of in the cave they’d been practicing in. He pulled back and, instead of opening a portal to somewhere he’d been before, tried to open one to a place he had only heard about. This time when he opened it, he caught a glimpse of steaming hot springs and a few people soaking in them. He quickly closed the portal before they could notice and turned to Kakashi, grinning. “I can’t just open portals to places I’ve been, I can open them anywhere! Think of all the cool things we can use this for! We can travel back to Konoha in an instant with this!” 

Kakashi nodded. “It would make returning after important missions easier.” 

“Nerd!” Obito pounced on him and attempted to give him a noogie. Kakashi fended him off ruthlessly, and Obito was forced to give up before they got too sidetracked fighting each other. “Live a little, Bakashi. We could go all kinds of cool places and be back before anyone misses us!” 

“That’s what you want to use it for?” Kakashi crossed his arms over his chest. 

Obito threw an arm around his shoulders. “Come on, I’ve always wanted to go to Yugakure, but the high-ranked jounin always snag those missions first.” 

“I’m a jounin,” Kakashi said. “I can just get us a mission there.” 

“Yeah, but you’ve only been a jounin for like a year. You’ve gotta be a jounin for at least a decade before getting a chance at a Yugakure mission,” Obito said wisely. He’d heard all his older cousins complaining about it. 

“Our teacher is the Hokage, stupid. We can just ask him for one,” Kakashi said. 

“Oh yeah! I keep forgetting about that.” It was still weird to think of Minato-sensei as the Hokage. Personally, Obito had been rooting for Kushina. “But isn’t that favoritism, or something?”

“We’re shinobi, Obito. No one is going to cry about life being unfair because we got an easy mission,” Kakashi said. 

“Well, yeah, but . . . isn’t it more fun to do things without permission?” 

“No.” 

“Buzzkill.” 

“Wait until you’re getting interrogated by T&I on suspicion of deserting the village. Then you can tell me how fun leaving the village without permission is.” 

“We wouldn’t be leaving the village without permission,” Obito said. “We’d just be . . . taking a little side trip. Which is basically what we’re doing right now.” 

“Those are completely different scenarios. This is training, not taking a vacation,” Kakashi said. 

“Come on,” Obito whined. “There has to be somewhere you’ve always wanted to go, but couldn’t get a mission to go there!” 

Kakashi scowled, and Obito knew he had him. “Tetsu no Kuni. The samurai don’t take kindly to shinobi interference, so we never have missions near there. Their swordsmanship is supposed to be unparalleled.” 

“Then let’s go there!” Obito declared. “It’ll be fun, Kakashi, we’ll be back before anyone even knows we went.” 

“Don’t be stupid. We can’t go there.” Obito opened his mouth to argue, but Kakashi continued. “Do you have any idea how cold it is there? We’re not even remotely dressed for the weather; we’d freeze to death the moment we stepped through the portal. The best way to do it would be to get a mission somewhere cold, so people wouldn’t be suspicious of us packing cold-weather clothing, then take a side trip to Tetsu once we finish the mission.” 

Obito whooped. “I knew you’d come around! Okay, it’s a plan. No take-backs, Bakashi!” 

“That’s for later,” Kakashi said sternly. “Right now, we have to test the limits of your abilities. We have a lot of work to do.” 

Obito groaned. “Can’t we just play it by ear?” 

“No.” 

“Figures. So, what’s the plan?” 

“First of all, we have to figure out exactly how many of these portals you can make in quick succession before running out of chakra, and how long you can have your Mangekyou Sharingan active . . .” 

***

“Ah, Obito, I thought you would be here. I have some forms for you to fill out.” 

“Sure thing, Shishou,” Obito mumbled as he attempted to peel another orange. Kakashi could strip the peel off in one go, leaving a perfectly curled strip of peel behind. Obito was determined to get the trick down, no matter how many oranges he had to eat. 

A small stack of papers appeared beside him. Obito picked up the pen and idly filled out the forms with one hand as he peeled the orange with the other. 

He cursed as a piece of it tore off halfway through. He peeled the rest of it carelessly, and put a little more of his attention towards filling out the forms. 

Halfway through, he stopped to consider what he was doing. “Uh, Shishou?” he asked, as he peered down at the little form telling him that the village was not liable in cases of death or serious injury. “What exactly am I filling out here?” 

“The jounin exam registration form, of course.” 

“Oh, yeah, course.” Obito nodded and continued filling out the forms. Mostly they just needed his signature and ninja identification number, so it was pretty mindless. 

He froze on the last page, his hand hovering above the paper. “Wait, what? The jounin exams?” 

“That’s right.” 

“Are you crazy? I can’t take the jounin exams! I’m . . .”  _ A terrible ninja. A clumsy knucklehead. An idiot who still can’t wake up on time even now that I’m fifteen years old.  _

“The student of a jounin of Konoha, a burgeoning expert with a tanto, with two summons that he works very well with and a fully evolved Sharingan,” Sakumo finished. “You’re more than ready for the exam.” 

“I—I don’t even know what the exam involves!” 

“It’s simple, really. The jounin exam tests leadership, knowledge, and ability. You’ll have to take lead on a mock mission, take a written exam, and spar one-on-one.” 

Obito gulped. “Uh, what happens with a mock mission?” 

“You’ll get a small task to carry out somewhere in the village and a team to lead. Keep in mind, these teammates are meant to test you and judge your performance. They’ll probably act in ways meant to challenge you. You might get someone lazy, or argumentative, or careless. They examine how you manage the team, how you complete the goal, and whether or not you succeed. 

“Next, the written exam. This part is pretty simple. Some questions about math, some about history, some about laws and rules, and so on.” 

“Uh, yeah, about that written exam . . . I don’t exactly have the best history with written tests.” 

“Don’t worry,” Sakumo assured him. “Kakashi will help you study for that one.” 

Obito groaned. “Jeez, throw me under the bus, why don’t you.” 

“Finally, the one-on-one sparring. You’ll face a jounin specifically chosen to fight you,” Sakumo said. “The judges will evaluate you based on how well you perform. This can involve whether or not you win, how many abilities you show off, and how long you last. Your scores in each of these tests are evaluated to determine whether or not you pass.” 

“Wait, so I don’t get eliminated if I fail the written part?” 

“No, although it will lower your score significantly. This isn’t the chuunin exams. Only a few people take the jounin exams each time,” Sakumo said. “There’s no need for the mass elimination of the chuunin exams.” 

“Who else is taking it?” Obito asked. 

“I’m not sure yet,” Sakumo admitted. “People like to hold it close to their chest to keep out of the betting. And there’s still a week before the forms are due, and a month until the exams. So, are you going to finish signing that?” 

Obito gritted his teeth and scrawled his name across the forms. “Hell yeah. These exams are going down!” 

***

Ever since the incident with Rin and Kiri, Narumi had spent most of his time traveling between Uzushio and Konoha. Tsubame wanted him running missions for Uzushio, while Minato and the Konoha elders wanted him on hand to keep an eye on Rin’s seal while she trained with Kushina. They compromised by sending him from one village to the other each month. At this point, Narumi was spending more time in Konoha than in Uzushio, since Tsubame always sent him off on a mission the moment he arrived home. 

He was so busy, he barely had a chance to keep track of time, although he always made sure to keep an account of how close they were to the day he would be born. Until then, there wasn’t much to do but bide his time and keep an eye out for Madara and Zetsu. Obito was still in Konoha, but there was no telling if Madara had found someone else to do his bidding. 

With all that on his mind, he somehow had no idea what was happening when Minato and Kushina greeted him with brilliant grins on their faces. 

Mostly, he was just relieved. Last he’d seen her, Kushina hadn’t been looking well, and Minato had been feeling the stresses of being Hokage right after a massive war. 

“Nii-san!” Minato said cheerfully. “We’re glad you could make it. We’re all having dinner at our house tonight. We made up the usual guest room for you.” 

Narumi fell into step beside him as soon as the guards had checked his identification. It was mostly a formality at this point, since the Hokage himself was there to greet him, but he didn’t mind. “Who’s gonna be there?” 

“Sakumo, Kakashi, Rin, and Obito,” Minato said. “I invited Jiraiya-sensei, but he’s out of the village again.” 

“And Mikoto!” Kushina declared. “I invited her too, ya know. She might bring Itachi-kun, she might not. He’s getting so big! It’s hard to believe he’s almost five already.” 

“Has he started the Academy yet?” 

“Not yet,” Minato said. “His father . . . asked, but I refused. I’m not letting any children join the Academy until they’re at least six, no matter how talented they are. Itachi can join the Academy in a year, with the rest of the children his age.” 

“We’re trying to make it an official law, but the council’s being a pain in the ass, as usual,” Kushina complained. “It took months just to get them to approve me as his official aide!” 

“At least the paperwork is more manageable now,” Minato said. “We’re still spending late nights at the office, though.” 

“It’s not all bad,” Kushina said, and winked at Minato cheekily. 

Minato turned pink, coughed, and cleared his throat. “Yes, well . . . ah, Kushina is making ramen for dinner, Nii-san.” 

Kushina laughed. “Way to change the subject, pretty boy. But yeah, I’m making ramen. I should really get started on that, if we want everything to be ready in time for dinner.” 

The three of them made their way to Kushina and Minato’s house. Since Minato had become Hokage, they had moved out of the apartment they had once shared in favor of a modest house with enough room for both a guest bedroom and a study. The dining room was large enough to comfortably seat all their friends with only a little bit of crowding. 

Sakumo, Kakashi, and Obito were the first to show up—Kakashi’s influence, Narumi didn’t doubt. Kakashi and Obito both looked slightly grubby, like they’d just come from training. They made a beeline for the kitchen, and Obito immediately began begging a taste of the food from Kushina. 

“Narumi!” Sakumo greeted, clapping him on the shoulder. “Back with us again I see.” 

“For the month,” Narumi agreed. 

“I’d say that it would be nice if the elders could get over themselves and stop demanding your presence, but I have to admit I like having you around,” Sakumo said. 

Narumi grinned at him. “And I like being around.” 

The door opened, this time to admit Rin. “Hi, Sensei, Kushina!” she called. “Narumi-san, thank you for coming again.” 

“My pleasure,” Narumi said. “How’s the training going?” 

Rin smiled slightly. “I’m making some progress. I think I’m finally figuring out this whole jinchuuriki thing.” 

“You’ll have to show me next time you and Kushina train together,” Narumi said. “And the elders want me to take another look at your seal. Let me know when’s a good time for you.” 

The door opened again, this time to admit Mikoto Uchiha. “Mikoto-chan!” Kushina cheered, rushing forwards to hug her and kiss her cheek. “I’m so glad you could make it. It’s not good for you to be shut up with all those stuffy old men, ya know!” 

Narumi’s eyes were drawn to Mikoto’s round belly. “Whoa,” he said. “You’ve gotten big since I was last here.” 

Mikoto smiled proudly as she rested a hand on her stomach. “They’re going to be a strong ninja. I can tell.” 

“She’s due in June, right?” Kushina asked. 

“That’s right.” 

“She?” Narumi asked. “You know already?” 

“It’s a bet!” Kushina declared. “It’s gonna be a girl. You had a boy, so now it’s time for a girl.” 

“That’s not how it works,” Minato sighed. 

“I would be happy with either,” Mikoto said. 

They drifted into the dining room as the conversation continued. Kushina suddenly recalled that she was in the middle of cooking and raced off, leaving the rest of them to talk by themselves. Narumi ended up talking with Sakumo about what Kakashi and Obito had been up to in the past month. 

“Obito has some news to share,” Sakumo said. 

Obito grinned. “You’re looking at one of Konoha’s newest jounin!” 

“Wait, you took the exam? And you didn’t tell me?” 

“It was a piece of cake!” Obito bragged. 

“He almost failed the mock mission,” Kakashi said. 

“Shut up! I didn’t count on you being one of the ones judging me,” Obito scowled. “I did really well in everything else.” 

“Only because I helped you study for the written exam for a month,” Kakashi said. “And because everybody sparred with you.” 

“It was horrible,” Obito groaned. “I got my ass kicked every single day for an entire month. Kogane has no mercy. Kakashi has no mercy. Shishou has no mercy. Fucking Tsunade has absolutely no mercy! I thought I was gonna die!” 

“You’re exaggerating. If she did hurt you that badly, she would heal you afterwards,” Kakashi said. 

“She had to anyways! She broke both my arms!” 

“Tsunade-chan can be a little overenthusiastic,” Sakumo chuckled. 

“Overenthusiastic?  _ Overenthusiastic _ ?” Obito waved his arms dramatically. “I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to take the exams! My life flashed before my eyes!” 

“Whoa! Settle down there!” Kushina dodged around Obito’s arms as she brought the ramen to the table. “Dig in while it’s hot, everybody.” 

Narumi eagerly slurped up the noodles as soon as the bowl was placed in front of him. He’d held Ichiraku Ramen at the pinnacle for years, but he had to admit not even that could top Kushina’s homemade ramen. 

The dinner table was silent; even Obito was too preoccupied with the food to talk. However, once the bowls were emptied and cleared away, Kushina clapped her hands together. “So! Minato and I had a little announcement to make . . .” 

“You’re gonna be the next Hokage?” Obito guessed. 

“You’re going to take a honeymoon after all?” Rin asked eagerly. 

“Nope!” Kushina said. “We’re having a baby.” 

Narumi’s mouth fell open. 

“Whoa, for real?” Obito asked. “Like, an actual, real-life baby?” 

Minato laughed. “Yes, a real baby.” 

“What are you going to name him? Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?” Rin asked. 

“We’re naming them after the main character from Jiraiya’s book,” Kushina said. For a minute, everyone in the room looked horrified, until she continued, “ _ The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi. _ Naruto.” 

The room breathed a sigh of relief. 

“What if it’s a girl?” Rin asked tentatively.

“Still Naruto!” Kushina said. 

“We’re still discussing that,” Minato said. 

“Hey, Naruto’s a great name for anyone, ya know!” 

“She’ll get bullied horribly.” 

“So did I! It’ll make her tough.” 

“How far along are you?” 

“Only a couple months. It’ll be born in October, according to Tsunade.” 

Narumi sat back, dazed. It was finally time, after all these years, for this time’s version of himself to be born. 

Someone pressed a cup of sake into his hand. On autopilot, he knocked it against the other’s cups and downed it. Someone refilled his cup, and he downed it again. 

Sakumo, pressed up against his side, laughed. “You okay there, Narumi? You’d think it was your kid that was being born.” 

“Feels like it.” Narumi held up his cup. “Pour me another.” 

Sakumo waggled the sake bottle in the air. “We’re all out.” 

Narumi looked around; the bottles nearest them were all empty, and although there might have been another one somewhere, he wasn’t about to scour the house on the off chance there might be more. The closest visible source of sake was, in fact, right next to him. “Not all out,” Narumi said. He reached down, plucked Sakumo’s sake cup from his hand, and tossed it back. 

“Ah, not fair!” Sakumo protested. 

Narumi grinned at him cheekily. “You know I’m good for it.” 

“Dad,” Kakashi called. “Obito and I are going home.” 

“I should get going, too,” Rin said. 

“I have to be going as well,” Mikoto said. “Would you care to walk with me, Hatake-san?” 

Sakumo hauled himself to his feet. “I’ll accompany you home, Mikoto-san. I’m sure Kushina is giving you a bunch of leftovers that need to be carried.” 

“Right here!” Kushina called, as she heaved a large container of ramen out of the kitchen. Sakumo grunted as she dumped it unceremoniously into his arms. 

“I’ll see you around, NarumI!” Sakumo called as he followed Mikoto out of the house, leaving Naruto alone with Kushina and Minato. 

Kushina and Minato exchanged a glance. “Ah, Nii-san, there were some things we wanted to talk to you about,” Minato said. “First . . . would you be Naruto’s godfather?” 

“Wait, me?” Narumi stared at them. “I mean, yeah, of course. I’d be honored.” 

“Oh, good. There’s no one I’d rather have take care of Naruto if something happened to us,” Minato said. “And on that note, could you take a look at Kushina’s seal? We’re both fairly certain there should be no danger as long as we take the proper precautions, and we’ll be heading outside the village just in case anything goes wrong, but we’d like your opinion as well.” 

“Sure, I’ll take a look at it. Uh, maybe not right now though.” Narumi held up the sake cup sheepishly. 

“Well yeah, not right now! Tonight’s a night for celebrating, not squinting over old seals,” Kushina declared. “You’ve both gotta drink on my behalf too, ya know. And on Naruto’s behalf!” 

“I was saving this for the private celebration,” Minato said, as he pulled out a small bottle of sake. “Jiraiya’s congratulations present. He assures me it’s delicious . . . and very expensive, which is why there’s only enough for a few cups.” 

Minato poured two cups, and he and Narumi drank deeply. 

“Hmm,” Minato said. 

“Yeah,” Narumi said. 

“It’s . . .” 

“It tastes like weapon oil.” 

“You’re joking.” Kushina dipped her finger in the sake and touched it to her tongue. “Blech! It does!” 

“Sensei has interesting taste,” Minato sighed. 

“Is that what they’re calling it these days? In my days, we called it ‘god-awful.’” Narumi sniffed the sake, coughed, and pushed it away. 

Kushina snickered. After a moment, Minato and Narumi joined in, and before long the three of them were laughing over the bottle of shitty sake until all three of them were breathless and red-faced. 

“I’m making him take this back.” 

“Yeah, probably for the best.” 

***

The months passed in a blur of traveling between villages and going on missions. Kushina and Minato looked happier every time he saw them. Kushina had found a new hobby in cooking for anyone who would sit down at her dinner table. “Who knows what Naruto’s favorite food is going to be!” she declared whenever she placed some new concoction in front of him. 

“If it’s really your kid, ramen,” Narumi always said. 

Mikoto’s kid was born in the summer—a boy named Sasuke, as Narumi had thought. Things were different, but so far all the kids he had grown up with the first time were the same—with the exception of Tsunade’s latest kids. Nawanuke, a boy, had been born the previous January, and was now a very loud one-year-old. In February, she had given birth to a girl they had proudly named Heiwa. Kushina, officially grounded from missions, spent most of her time fussing over Sasuke with Mikoto and babysitting Heiwa and Nawanuke when both of their parents were called to the hospital. 

Kakashi and Obito were often missing from the village, along with Kogane. Narumi suspected that Minato had assigned at least one of them to ANBU, although he couldn’t know for sure. Rin, on the other hand, was always in the village, training her new abilities as a jinchuuriki and trying to get her chakra control up to her previous high standards. 

Now that Obito and Kakashi were both jounin, Sakumo was usually out on missions as well. On occasion, he and Narumi were assigned to joint missions together. Otherwise, Narumi had to wait until his visits to Konoha and Sakumo’s time off coincided to see him. 

October drew ever nearer; as September drew to a close, Narumi prepared to head over to Konoha, gathering anything he thought he might need should Zetsu or some other minion show up. Tsubame, seemingly understanding Narumi’s tension, didn’t assign him anything more time consuming than checking over the protective seals around Uzushio until the last week of September. 

“I have one last mission for you. I would have liked to assign it to someone else, considering your nephew is about to be born, but unfortunately you are the only one available with a high enough clearance for the mission,” Tsubame said. “Fortunately, it shouldn’t take you long. You can leave for Konoha as soon as your mission is completed.” 

Narumi scanned the mission scroll. A simple retrieval mission—they’d received evidence of some important documents that had gone missing during the war, and he was being sent to find them. The documents had been sold to a minor crime family headquartered on the coast of the Land of Fire. Retrieving them was anticipated to be a bit troublesome, but not too dangerous for a jounin. 

He gave Tsubame a cheeky salute as he rolled up the scroll and stored it away in one of the many seals on his belt. “No problem, Uzukage-sama. I’ll have it back before you know it.” 

Tsubame rolled his eyes and waved him on. “Don’t cause too much trouble. You know the daimyo gets huffy if Uzushio shinobi wreak havoc in his cities.” 

“No promises!” Narumi called back as he left the room. 

The mission site wasn’t far from Uzushio; he could easily reach it within the day if he moved at a comfortable pace. It was a large village, focused on trade, so Uzushio shinobi often visited it when they wanted something they couldn’t get in the village. Uzushio knew of the crime family doing business in the background, but so long as they kept away from shinobi business, hadn’t been too bothered by them. Now that the family was sticking its nose where it wasn’t wanted, it was time to take action. 

The center of their operations was a real estate office in the center of town. It was here that Narumi headed, purposefully waiting until night had fallen and the office was almost empty to make his move. 

As a kid, he hadn’t really been one for stealth; he’d been more of a run in, guns-blazing type. He’d had his lessons knocked into him by the time he’d reached his late teens, and now it was almost second nature to slip through a window and take to the ceiling to avoid running into any lingering guards. There were a few walking the halls and guarding doorways, but it was easy to avoid them or distract them. Normally he wasn’t the best person for stealth missions, since he was terrible at hiding his chakra, but that didn’t really matter in this case. It wasn’t like the civilians were going to sense him. 

In and out, that was the plan. So long as he didn’t alert them, he could be on his way to Konoha faster than it took a cup of instant ramen to cook. 

Eventually, he found a location that looked promising, an office that was guarded by two men outside the room, and three men inside the room. One of the ones inside was guarding the window, blocking off another potential entrance. 

He knocked out the two outside the door with a couple sleep seals; based on his observations, he had some time before the next patrol came along, and it wasn’t like he was going for complete secrecy. They’d realize someone had been through when the documents went missing anyways. 

With that in mind, Narumi opened the door and rushed the three men inside without a second thought, easily taking down the two just inside the door with sleep seals before they had a chance to react. The third turned, swore as he saw the other two going down like bags of bricks, and scrambled for the sword strapped to his hip. He didn’t draw it more than an inch before Narumi’s fist collided with his jaw, knocking his head back hard enough that it hit the wall with a loud thud. 

Narumi winced as the man dropped to the floor. Hopefully no one had heard that. He wasn’t about to stick around to find out, so he quickly began a sweep of the room. The desk contained a few interesting bits of information he put into the storage seal that he and Tsubame were linked to; someone in Uzushio would find a use for them. The stolen documents weren’t in the desk, however, so he began a quick sweep of the room, digging up a few other interesting bits and bobs as he searched under floorboards and behind books in the bookshelf. 

He finally found what he was looking for as his hand sank through a book as if it wasn’t there at all. Narumi could have smacked himself. He sucked at noticing genjutsu; he should have tried dispelling them as soon as he walked into the room. 

Narumi pushed his hand further into the bookshelf and pulled out a scroll decorated with the Uzumaki spiral. He sealed it away, and then pulled out the linked message scroll, which Tsubame was no doubt checking frequently.

_ Mission complete. Items deposited in linked storage. Off to K.  _

Only the first few words of Tsubame’s message appeared— _ Understood. Wish our cousin luck with the baby— _ before something collided with the back of his head. Narumi stumbled and turned around, shoving the scroll back into his pocket. A genjutsu melted away before his eyes, revealing a young woman with a fierce scowl and a staff raised up to strike. 

Narumi had just enough time to think that yeah, he really had to make a habit of checking for genjutsu, and then the staff swept through the air and hit his head with a mighty crack. 

***

Narumi didn’t know how much time had passed; he woke up, now and then, when his attackers lifted the genjutsu on him to give him food or ask him questions. Luckily for him, he had a pretty high pain tolerance, and they weren’t creative enough to think to use a genjutsu to get the information they wanted. He kept his mouth shut, and inevitably they got frustrated and knocked him out again. 

There were quite a few of them, from what he could tell. Missing nin from Kiri, mostly, and a few hangers-on from smaller villages who had joined up with them. Five, eight, ten, fifteen—he wasn’t sure how many. He wasn’t in a state to count them most of the time, too dazed to pay attention to his surroundings most of the time. If it wasn’t the genjutsu, it was the pain, or the hunger, or the thirst. 

He wasn’t sure how long it had been; no more than a week or so, he was sure. Not October yet, he hoped. 

He kept an eye out, when he was aware enough to pay attention to his surroundings, looking for a possible way to escape. His chance came suddenly, when he snapped out of the genjutsu just as a body collapsed to the ground in front of him. Narumi rolled away until he hit the wall of the cave his attackers were using as a hideout. 

He glanced around the room, and found himself staring at a blank-masked individual—Kiri hunter-nin. The hunter-nin stared at him for a split second before vanishing so quickly Narumi wondered, for an instant, if he had imagined it. The body was still on the ground, however, so Narumi gritted his teeth and got to work. 

The wall of the cave was rough enough to tear through the cloth they’d wrapped around his wrists; they’d relied more on genjutsu to keep him trapped. His hands were free in only a few minutes, and then he was able to untie his ankles as well. 

Getting to his feet was a slow process; his legs didn’t want to cooperate at first, and he had to use the wall to support himself at first. Eventually, however, he felt sturdy enough to limp his way into the middle of the room to remove the weapons from the body lying there. They’d taken his weapons and scrolls from him, and he wasn’t about to go wandering around without anything to defend himself. 

Not that he faced much opposition as he made his way through the caves in search of his belongings and the exit; the hunter-nin, when he saw them, vanished immediately without paying him any heed, and the missing-nin were too busy fighting or escaping the hunter-nin to pay attention to him. His progress through the caves was slow, but largely unimpeded. 

His belongings had been unceremoniously stuffed into a crate near the exit of the caves. They’d clearly been searched, and his sealing supplies had been decimated, but clearly none of them had managed to get into the linked message scroll. He gathered everything else up, but kept out the linked message scroll as he stumbled out of the cave, emerging into a forest that could have been anywhere in Konoha or the surrounding smaller countries. He raised a hand to his mouth, ready to bite down, only to blink in surprise as he realized there was already blood trickling down his fingers. He wasn’t sure where it was from. 

He pressed his thumb, already covered in blood, to the seal on the scroll. It smeared as his hand shook, but the seal opened nonetheless. 

Narumi stumbled and sank to his knees. Bloody fingerprints dotted the scroll. Narumi blinked back dark spots and brought his finger to the page, smearing his message over the scroll in messy calligraphy that would have had Tsubame scolding him for sure. 

He didn’t know what day it was; he didn’t know how much time he had. He didn’t even know if this message would still be useful, but he had to try. 

_ Oct 10. Go to Konoha.  _

***

Tsubame received the message early in the morning on October 10th. It was a short, simple thing, but he stared at it for a long time. He hadn’t heard anything from Narumi in days, had assumed he was busy helping his brother and sister-in-law with preparations for the baby, and then this. 

_ Oct 10. Go to Konoha.  _

Just after midnight when he received it, and his wife was expecting him home at any minute, but he immediately packed his things and summoned a small group of ANBU to accompany him. If Narumi had sent him such an urgent message, then something must have gone wrong in Konoha—and that was before Tsubame considered the smears of blood on the scroll. The two things together spoke of a situation that made his heart pound with anxiety. 

Even now, after everything, all their disagreements and difficulties, Narumi was one of his closest friends—possibly his closest friend, period, even after everything that had happened between them. Tsubame wasn’t sure what Uzushio would look like without Narumi, and he didn’t want to find out. 

He ran all the way to Konoha, for once not pausing to check to see if the ANBU were keeping up. They would make it to Konoha eventually, and he didn’t have time to waste. 

As it was, as he approached Konoha early in the morning on October 11th, he could see smoke rising into the air. 

The gate, when he arrived, was entirely abandoned, lacking the usual guards that greeted visitors. And no wonder—just about half the wall was crushed. Tsubame stepped through, taking an instant to survey the situation as the ANBU caught up to him. 

A few flickering barriers were in place around the village, despite the lack of any apparent threat. Nearby, a jounin attempted to talk down one of the trembling chuunin powering the barrier, clearly too terrified to recognize that the threat was gone and now all that remained was the clean-up. And there was a lot of clean-up to be done; even from the gates he could see that half the village had been destroyed. 

He signaled the ANBU gathered behind him. “Assist the Konoha shinobi. Focus on search and rescue for now until we learn more about the situation.” 

The ANBU nodded and ran towards the destroyed sections of the village, and Tsubame made his way to the administration building. He passed a few people on his way there—a jounin nursing a broken leg, comforting a crying chuunin as she attempted to heal it; a blond boy he vaguely recognized as Tsunade’s son, clutching two children who must have been his younger siblings; three genin sobbing and hugging each other, desperately holding onto one of them who had clearly been dragged from the rubble only moments before; a lone genin running through the streets, yelling names at the top of her lungs. Tsubame ignored them all for the moment; no matter how much he wished to stop and help, he was needed elsewhere. 

The Hokage’s office was, miraculously, still in one piece. A few ANBU attempted to bar him entrance, only to back off when faced with his glare. He nearly ran through the building in his haste to reach the Hokage’s office—if Narumi was anywhere in Konoha, he would be there, with his brother. 

It wasn’t Minato Namikaze’s voice that Tsubame heard as he approached the office, however. 

“The villagers will be informed,” the Sandaime’s voice said, as he approached. “They deserve to know what Minato died for.” 

“Surely you don’t intend to tell them  _ everything _ .” 

“Not everything. The boy’s parentage will remain a secret—who knows who would seek revenge on him for his parent’s actions. But the villagers will be informed that the beast was sealed away. They will respect the boy as what he is—a hero who saved the village.” 

“This is madness. The other villages will find out immediately! And once word reaches Kiri—” 

“That will not happen. I will issue an order that no one is to speak of the boy’s nature as a jinchuuriki. He will be raised as any other child. After the events of tonight, I am sorry to say that one more child in the orphanages will not make much of a difference.” 

“An orphanage? You can’t be serious. The lack of security alone ensures the jinchuuriki will go missing within the month.” 

“The ANBU will guard him—” 

“Hah! My agents will guard him better than the ANBU ever could. Give the boy to me, Sarutobi. As the village’s jinchuuriki, he needs to be trained—” 

“I am not giving ROOT Minato’s son—” 

Tsubame had heard enough; without a word of warning, he swept through the door and settled a glare upon the four occupants of the room. Sarutobi he knew well, of course, from previous dealings with the man as Kage of their respective village; one other, Danzo, he was also familiar with. The two others he didn’t know, but he was fairly certain they were Sarutobi’s advisors. 

Sarutobi stood behind the Hokage’s desk, another confirmation of the words Tsubame had heard earlier. The final confirmation was the cradle set on top of the desk; Minato and Kushina would not have let their child out of their sights if they had no other choice. 

Tsubame lifted the child from the cradle, smiling down at his blue eyes and blond fuzz. Already he resembled Narumi and Minato; perhaps that would change as he got older, perhaps not. 

Once he had the child settled in his arms, he settled his glare upon the two men facing off across the desk. “You will do no such thing,” he said. “Either of you. He is Kushina’s son, an Uzumaki. He has a family to take care of him.” 

Danzo’s eye narrowed. “He is the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. He belongs in Konoha.” 

“Just as the Sanbi jinchuuriki belongs in Kiri?” Tsubame snapped back. “He is a child who belongs with his family. Kushina and Minato—” 

“Dead,” the Sandaime said. “The Kyuubi broke through the seal as Kushina was giving birth. Minato gave his life to seal the Kyuubi into Naruto.” 

“Naruto,” Tsubame repeated. Trust Kushina to name her son after a ramen topping. “Regardless, in the event of their deaths, Naruto was to be given to his next of kin. Where is Narumi?” 

“Narumi? I had thought he was still in Uzushio,” the Sandaime said. “He never arrived in Konoha.”

“He said he was on his way to Konoha several days ago,” Tsubame said. Clearly, something had gone wrong along the way if he had never arrived. 

“I will send someone to look for him,” the Sandaime said. “His expertise would be of help in rebuilding the barrier seals around the village—completely destroyed when the Kyuubi attacked. As for Naruto, however . . .” 

“The Uzumaki will take care of him,” Tsubame said. “He belongs with his family. If we are unable to locate Narumi, I will take care of him myself.” 

“Theft of a jinchuuriki breaks the treaty between Uzushio and Konoha,” Danzo said. 

Tsubame knew there was a reason the man rubbed him the wrong way;  _ theft,  _ as if Naruto was an object and not a child. “It hardly counts as kidnapping when he is being returned to his next of kin after the death of his immediate family,” he retorted. 

“Perhaps a compromise,” the Sandaime said. “Naruto can live with his family in Uzushio until he is old enough to attend the academy, and then he will come to live in Konoha, just like Kushina did.” 

Tsubasa had been the one to negotiate Kushina’s move to Konoha, not Tsubame. He had never found any issues with how Tsubasa had resolved it—but he could push for more. “Narumi will want to go with him. At that point, you are removing two powerful shinobi from Uzushio. We will require compensation.” 

“A negotiation that can occur later,” the Sandaime said. “For now, we can agree to discuss the details once Naruto is old enough to attend the academy. Right now, the village needs us.” 

“I left on short notice—I have to return to Uzushio,” Tsubame said. “I’ll send whoever I can spare to help rebuild. I currently have ANBU assisting in search and rescue efforts. They are yours for the time being.” 

The Sandaime nodded gracefully. “Your efforts are much appreciated. In return, I will send some trackers after Narumi.” 

“My thanks,” Tsubame murmured. The child in his arms stirred, drawing his attention away from the other occupants of the office. “I will take Naruto with me; if you find Narumi, inform him of this.” 

With that, Tsubame left the office with the boy before any of the three advisors could protest. Already, as he left the room, he could hear their voices rising as they argued. Tsubame tucked the boy against his chest and stepped out into the streets, heading back towards Uzushio. 

He had a rescue mission to arrange.

***

The first thing Narumi became aware of was something tickling his nose. He wrinkled his nose and sneezed. 

The ground beneath him shifted. 

“So,” said a familiar voice. “You’re awake.” 

“I told you he would awaken soon,” said a second, more feminine voice. 

Narumi blinked. He wasn’t lying on the ground, as he had thought, but being carried piggyback by someone with a familiar mane of silver hair. A large wolf stared at him placidly. “Sakumo? What are you doing here?” 

“Rescuing you. Careful, don’t move too much. You really did a number on yourself. I did what I could, but I’m no medic-nin. Couldn’t spare any of them,” Sakumo muttered, quieter. 

The comment reminded him, and Narumi flailed as he attempted to retrieve his message scroll to see if Tsubame had replied to him. “Sakumo, what day is it? What happened?” 

“October 13th,” Sakumo said. “I found you near a cave close to the Kusa border. Or, Ran did, technically. What happened?” 

“Never mind that, what happened to—” 

The words caught in his throat. 

Sakumo was silent for a moment. “Naruto is fine,” he said, at last. “I haven’t seen him, but I heard. Kushina and Minato . . . didn’t make it. The Kyuubi broke out of the seal. Minato defeated it, but it cost him his life.” 

The pain that washed through him this time had nothing to do with his injuries. Narumi struck his fist against Sakumo’s shoulder, only to apologetically brush his hand over the spot when the man grunted. “Dammit,” he growled. “I should’ve—” 

“You were captured,” Sakumo said. “It wasn’t your fault. Both Kushina and Minato would tell you the same.” 

Narumi contained the words that wanted to escape him. It was his fault; he had known that Kushina and Minato would be in danger. He should have refused the mission, told Tsubame to give it to someone else, clearance be damned. He should have made himself keep going instead of passing out in the forest. He shouldn’t have gotten captured in the first place; what kind of jounin didn’t even check for genjutsu when infiltrating an unfamiliar location? 

Rookie mistakes, and now Minato and Kushina and countless citizens of Konoha were dead, and Naruto would grow up not knowing his parents. 

“Naruto! Is he okay?” Narumi demanded. “Where is he?” 

“He’s fine. Tsubame has him, he took him back to Uzushio the moment he arrived in Konoha,” Sakumo said. “The moment he realized you weren’t in Konoha, he had the Sandaime organize your rescue mission. That’s me. There’s some Uzushio folks running around looking for you, too.” 

Narumi relaxed slightly at that. Tsubame would keep Naruto safe. “And everyone else?” 

“All fine. Minato made the kids stay behind the barrier. Kakashi and Obito are furious, but they’re unhurt except for a couple bumps and bruises. Rin’s working overtime at the hospital, but she’s fine too.” 

“Thought her chakra control wasn’t good enough for medic-nin techniques yet.” 

“She’s doing the basics—stitches, splints, the works. Keeping people tided over until a medic can see to them,” Sakumo explained. “Tsunade and Dan are busy at the hospital too. Kogane’s been looking after Nawanuke and Heiwa. I don’t think he’s let them out of his sight once since the attack. The village is a mess. We’ve even got civilians pitching in to clean things up.” He sighed. “I think that about covers it.” 

Narumi sighed and rested his head against Sakumo’s shoulder. “What a fucking mess.” 

Sakumo laughed harshly. “You can say that again. Still, we’ll make it through. Uzushio was decimated, and look at her now. That’s where we’re headed, by the way. Trust me, you don’t want to try to get a bed at Konoha’s hospital right now. Tsubame sent over a bunch of medics, and they’re still swamped. Besides, I figured you’d want to see your nephew as soon as possible.” 

“Yeah. Thanks, Sakumo.” 

“Don’t mention it. Just relax and let me take care of things. You’ll be home before you know it.” 

***

The next time he woke up, Narumi was in a plain room he immediately recognized as one of Uzushio’s hospital rooms. The Konoha hospital rooms were all white, but Uzushio’s had cheerfully blue walls. 

He wondered, for a moment, what he was doing there. He turned his head to the side and spotted Tsubame in the chair next to his bed, flipping through paperwork.

Narumi shot up in bed. “Naruto!”

“Is fine,” Tsubame said calmly. “He’s in the hands of our best nurses. Sakumo informed me that he filled you in on what happened?” 

Narumi nodded. His hands clenched at the bedspread. 

Kushina and Minato, once again gone before their time, when he could have prevented it. 

“I took the liberty of preparing your house for Naruto,” Tsubame said. “Additionally, I have removed you from the active mission roster for the foreseeable future.” 

“Wha—why?” 

“All single parents are removed from the active mission roster until their children are at least in the academy,” Tsubame explained. 

Narumi struggled up from the bed. Tsubame knew him well enough to not bother trying to stop him. “I’m going to see Naruto,” he said. 

Tsubame followed him to the door, but put a hand on the door to hold it shut before Narumi could open it. “There’s something else you need to know. Naruto is the Nine-Tail’s jinchuuriki.” 

“Yeah. I thought as much,” Narumi said. He took a deep breath and sighed it out. “Who else knows?” 

“You. Me. The Sandaime Hokage and his advisors,” Tsubame said. “That’s it.” 

Narumi opened his mouth, shut it again, and cleared his throat. “Wait, only us? That’s like, only six people.” 

“I was hardly going to let Sarutobi tell the whole village,” Tsubame said. “The matter is officially a village secret. I authorize you to tell Naruto as soon as you think he’s old enough to understand.” 

He paused, and then sighed. “I suppose you may also tell Sakumo.” 

Narumi clasped his shoulder. “Thanks, Tsubame. For looking out for Naruto.” 

Tsubame looked away. “I could hardly do otherwise. He is an Uzumaki, after all.” 

Tsubame removed his hand from the door, allowing Narumi to open it, and together they set off down the hallways of the hospital. “So no one knows about, uh, that thing. But what about Naruto’s parents?” 

“As far as anyone is concerned, his parents are Uzumaki,” Tsubame said. “Konoha was told that the Kushina and Minato’s child was killed when the beast attacked. The only ones who know otherwise apart from the village leaders are, as far as I know, Sakumo, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Minato’s students. As with the other matter, I trust you to tell Naruto as soon as he is old enough.” 

Narumi definitely didn’t want to wait to tell Naruto until he was as old as Narumi had been. “Maybe when he enters the Academy. . .” 

“That’s another thing I wanted to talk to you about. Naruto will be going to the academy in Konoha. And before you get upset, I already assumed you would be leaving with him,” Tsubame said. “Sarutobi only agreed to allow Naruto to grow up with his family until he was old enough to enter the academy.” 

Naruto would get to grow up with the same kids Narumi had grown up with—that was a nice thought. “So, until he’s six?” 

“Perhaps. Minato was in the process of pushing through a law that would only allow children to enter at the age of eight. The council might pass it in his memory,” Tsubame said. 

“Minato would like that,” Narumi murmured. 

“You should hear Orochimaru talk about it. You would think the village had banned him from doing research ever again,” Tsubame snorted. “Of course, there’s no law against teaching your children at home before they join the academy. I have some ideas, for Naruto—I hardly want to send him off to Konoha with no preparation for what could be waiting there—but that can wait. For now, I think there’s someone you want to see much more than you want to talk to me.” 

They stopped in front of a long window. A few nurses were there, tending to a few babies, but Narumi’s eyes were immediately drawn to Sakumo, who was murmuring to a small bundle in his arms. He looked up, met Narumi’s eyes, and presented the bundle with a broad smile. 

A small, red, scrunched-up face with a tuft of blond hair poked out of the bundle. Narumi couldn’t help but smile despite his lingering sadness and anger over his failure. “He’s adorable.” 

“Go on,” Tsubame said, pushing him towards the door. “I’m sure Sakumo has all kinds of advice to give you before he has to leave. We can talk about the future later.” 

Part of him wanted to rage, to scream that it just wasn’t fair that Kushina and Minato had still been killed, that somehow he had failed to protect him despite all of his knowledge of what was coming, but a soft smile from Sakumo as he held Naruto up and waved his little hand at Narumi had him pushing all that aside. He could deal with that later. Right now, Naruto was more important. With one last deep breath, Narumi steadied himself and stepped through the door to join Sakumo. 


	16. Chapter 16

The rebuilding of Konoha was slow. The Sandaime took over pretty much immediately and organized all the chuunin and genin into rescue and repairs, and sent out all the available jounin on missions to keep up appearances, but even months after the attack, it seemed like Obito was tripping over rubble every other step. At least Ichiraku was back in business. 

Even if it wasn’t the same without Kushina trying to steal his toppings all the time. 

Nothing was the same now. 

He almost never saw Rin, these days. She was always busy at the hospital, helping Tsunade and Dan in whatever way she could and leading a group of civilians who had volunteered at the hospital. 

It was the same with Sakumo. The village needed money, so the jounin were pretty much always gone unless they worked at the hospital—and now that most people were out of the hospital, for better or for worse, more and more medic-nin were being sent out as well. Sakumo, as one of the most high profile shinobi in the village, was guarding lords and ladies and making nice with rich clients. 

The Hokage had decided that Kakashi was now skilled enough with his new limbs to be sent out on high-profile missions, the kind of missions that generated gossip about how strong the next generation of Konoha shinobi was. When he wasn’t accompanying Sakumo on the Hokage’s doomed attempts to make Kakashi network with the upper-crust of society, Kakashi was usually teamed up with Obito for missions. These days, Obito and Kakashi spent their days hunting down all the S-ranked bounties they hadn’t had to worry about when the village had been in top shape. 

It was, in all honesty, one of the worst jobs he’d ever been given, second only to the Kanabi Bridge mission. Somehow, when he imagined becoming a jounin, he thought he’d be getting all the nice missions to exciting locations, not missions that sent him hiking through a swamp in the ass-end of nowhere, getting devoured by bugs and lugging an unconscious bounty back to where he’d left Kakashi. 

“Heeeey, Bakashi!” Obito called. “Get your lazy ass over here! Noodles, can you smell him?” 

Noodles sniffed and then scrunched up her nose. “I think a bug flew up my nose!” 

Obito sighed and adjusted his grip on the bounty. Next time, he was going to go after the short guy, and Kakashi could take down the burly woman. “Bakashi!” 

“There’sssss no need to sssssshout.” 

Obito shrieked as something flicked his ear, and resisted the urge to swat at his shoulder. “Please don’t do that,” he said. 

The snake perched on his shoulder hissed; Obito got the feeling it was laughing at him. “I will stop doing that when your reactions stop being so amusing. My master issss right over there.” 

Obito followed in the direction the snake pointed with its outstretched head. “Bakashi! Your snake is bullying me again!” 

“She wouldn’t bully you if you didn’t make yourself such an easy target,” Kakashi said, from his seat on top of a bound body. He looked up, his single eye roving over Obito. He nodded and snapped shut the book he’d been reading, the ever-updating Uzushio bingo book that Narumi Uzumaki had given him. Obito had taken a look at it once, while Kakashi had been studying his Konoha bingo book. It was filled with shinobi from Kiri and missing-nin from Uzushio, and was dotted with cheerful little notes from Narumi. Sometimes instead of bingo book pages, he even added little doodles of Naruto and updates on how he was doing. Obito had taken to ripping them out of the bingo book and saving them, along with the baby pictures Narumi sent them from time to time. He had quite a few pictures he saved up now. When he next had some free time, he planned on getting a scrapbook to officially collect them, instead of just keeping them in a shoebox in his closet. 

Kakashi stood and hauled his bounty over his shoulder. “Let’s get them back to Konoha.” 

“One of these times I’m going to persuade you to take a break before rushing right back to the village,” Obito muttered as he activated his Mangekyo Sharingan. The two of them stepped through the portal that appeared, and emerged in the forest just outside the village gates. Five minutes later, they approached the gate. 

“Fast as usual, huh,” one of the chuunin at the gates said, as he checked over their mission scroll and identification. “How long was it this time? Three days?” 

Kakashi shrugged and walked through the gate, leading the way to the bounty drop-off point. Obito knew that the bounties went to T&I, but beyond that, he had no idea what happened to them once they handed them off to the scarred jounin behind the counter. He was pretty sure he was better off not knowing. 

Obito stretched out his sore muscles as they left the building and abandoned the bounties to their fates. “So, what now? Another mission? Or are you actually going to let us stop for lunch this time?” 

In response, Kakashi turned and silently trudged down the street, hands in his pockets. Obito followed behind him, letting Kakashi take the lead past newly-repaired shops and houses, all the way to the graveyard. 

The grave for Kushina and Minato was still piled high with flowers from the regular visitors that dropped by. Someone had even left a bowl of ramen as an offering. Kakashi silently knelt down and lit a stick of incense. Obito sat at his side and watched the smoke drift through the air. 

The Hokage Mountain watched over them. 

“I wonder who they’re gonna get to be the Godaime,” he said. “I mean, the Sandaime is super old, right? He already retired once.” 

“Probably one of the Senjus. Dan or Tsunade,” Kakashi said. “Shishou was complaining about it to me.” 

Obito shivered. “Imagine Orochimaru as Hokage.” 

“I don’t think he actually wants the hat,” Kakashi said. “He’s too busy with research for that. He only cares if the Hokage will interfere with his work and funding.” 

Kakashi sat back on his heels and stared up at the mountain as well. He was silent for a long time, long enough that Obito started feeling antsy and had to resist the urge to jiggle his leg. 

“They’ve already started talking about the next Hokage. My father told me,” Kakashi said. He got to his feet, and then offered Obito a hand up. “Let’s get a mission.” 

Kakashi turned, making to pull his hand away. Obito tightened his grip and pulled back, forcing Kakashi to stop and look at him, his single eye narrowed in irritation. “Let’s do something fun,” Obito blurted. “Outside the village.” 

The more he thought about it, the more the idea appealed to him. Obito took off towards the mission center, thoughts wheeling around in his head. That place with the hot springs, maybe, if he could swing it—although it was getting colder now, so that was likely to be a pretty popular location. 

No, Obito had a better idea. 

He burst into the mission center; the chuunin at the desk looked up with an exasperated expression on his face. “You again?” 

“I’m here for another mission! Somewhere cold. Like, super cold.” 

The chuunin’s eyebrows rose. “Somewhere cold? At this time of year?” He shuffled through some scrolls, and eventually dropped a small pile of them on the desk. “Take your pick. We’ve got a couple bounties in the Land of Snow—” 

Obito waved his hand. “No, no bounties.” 

The chuunin muttered something about “picky jounin” under his breath. “Fine. We have a bodyguard mission for some minor noble. Nothing fancy, but he’s paying big bucks. And then we have a priority delivery to the daimyo of Yuki no Kuni. The faster you can get it there, the better.” 

Obito smacked his hand against the desk. “The second one! We’ll take it.” 

The chuunin handed over the scroll. “You have three weeks.” 

Obito grinned; three weeks was more than enough time. “Sounds great! Let’s go, Kakashi. Grab your stuff and meet me at the gate.” 

“You have to let go of me first.” 

Obito looked down and saw he was indeed still holding Kakashi's hand. He snatched his hand away and scratched at the back of his head with awkward laugh. “Eheheh. Sorry about that. Anyways, uh, meet back here in an hour?” 

Kakashi looked at him. “I'll give you three.” 

Obito puffed out his cheeks irritably. “Jeez, Bakashi, I’m not that bad anymore! Just for that, I’m going to beat you here.” 

Of course, as always, the universe conspired against him. First, when he went to the Uchiha compound to restock his gear, he ran into Mikoto and ended up getting drawn into a long conversation about whether or not he was eating properly. He finally managed to escape, only to find an old woman returning home with several massive grocery bags just as he was leaving the compound. He couldn’t just leave her to it, of course, so he offered his assistance and helped her home, and then ended up putting away her groceries for her as well. 

In the end, he managed to get to the gate two hours later to find Kakashi waiting for him. 

Kakashi raised his one visible eyebrow. “Thought you were going to beat me here.” 

“Shut up,” Obito said. 

The chuunin looked over their mission scroll briefly before waving them on. Obito waited until they were out of site of the village before opening up a portal. They paused in the in-between world to put on their winter gear, and good thing, too, since they emerged in the middle of a snowstorm. 

“Shit!” Obito quickly yanked down his snow-goggles and tugged his scarf up higher. “C’mon, Bakashi, the city should be just up ahead.” 

Thankfully, he’d positioned the portal close enough to the city that they only had to run through the snow for half an hour. They were quickly escorted to the daimyo’s palace and given a chance to rest and regain their energy after delivering their message. 

“A three week mission, done in an hour,” Obito sighed as they relaxed in the bedroom they had been given for the night; Obito could have gotten them out of the country in an instant, but Kakashi had said it would be rude to refuse the hospitality. 

“I take it you have a plan for the remainder of our time,” Kakashi said. 

Obito grinned and put a finger to his lips. “It’s a secret! But keep your winter gear on.” 

They left in the morning, after eating a hot breakfast and giving their farewells to the daimyo. In the in-between world, Obito removed anything that might mark him as a shinobi, from his headband to his weapon pouches, and Kakashi did the same. Once they were done, they looked almost like civilians, although the bandage they’d wrapped over Kakashi’s empty eye socket made him stand out. 

With that taken care of, Obito took them to another snowfield. Here, however, the skies were clear and cloudless, and he could clearly see towering mountains in the distance. 

Kakashi looked around as he tugged his scarf tighter. “Where are we?” 

“You’ll see!” Obito declared. 

They managed to find their way to something resembling a path. Obito wasn’t sure they were going in the right direction—he hadn’t been able to find much information on their destination—but they did eventually see a city rising in the distance. 

Obito’s breath caught in his throat as they neared the entrance. There, swords at his side, stood a man dressed all in plate armor, complete with a mask covering his face. 

“Obito, you didn’t,” Kakashi said. “We’re now allowed to be here.” 

“Live a little, Kakashi! Relax and don’t say anything incriminating, and they’ll never know.” 

Kakashi sighed, but allowed Obito to pull him up to the entrance. A sword, still in its sheath, dropped in front of him as he approached. 

“Halt. Name yourselves,” the samurai ordered. 

Obito grinned at him. “I’m Tobi, and this is my, uh, boyfriend, Ba—shi.” 

The samurai stared down at him. Obito really wanted to know what expression he was making. 

“We’re on a trip!” Obito added, when the samurai said nothing. 

“Present your identification,” the samurai said. 

The only identification Obito had was his shinobi ID card, and that would definitely give the game away. “Uh. Should I have identification?” 

“If you are a shinobi,” the samurai said. 

Obito laughed nervously. “Uh, nope, not a shinobi.” 

The samurai stared at him. 

Obito tried not to look away. 

The sword in his path lifted. “If you are lying, the consequences will be severe,” the samurai said. 

“Great!” Obito said, grabbing Kakashi’s hand. “Come on, let’s go. I bet there’s an inn somewhere around here.” 

The capital of Tetsu was smaller than the capital back home, but Obito still managed to find an inn with only a little bit of aimlessly wandering around the snowy streets. There weren’t many options, but this one looked warm and comfortable and not too pricey, not that he was too worried about expenses considering how much his missions paid these days. 

“Bashi?” Kakashi hissed as soon as the innkeeper had bustled out of view, leaving them alone in the main room. 

“I was trying to think quickly!” Obito protested. “Be grateful I didn’t introduce you as Bakashi.” 

Kakashi crossed his arms over his chest. “Boyfriend?” 

“Uh.” Obito had to admit he hadn’t really thought that one over; it had just been the first thing to come to mind. 

Kakashi looked away. “. . . Nevermind. It’s fine. We should take a look around before they figure out we’re shinobi and kick us out.” 

“Uh, I think they might arrest us actually,” Obito said. “I can get us away if they try that, but we should probably stick together just in case.” 

Kakashi shrugged. “That’s fine. We should stay together anyways. Since we’re _boyfriends_.” 

Obito tried to ignore the heat in his cheeks. “Uh, yeah. Sure! Sounds good. So, where do you want to go?” 

Obito’s stomach growled loudly before Kakashi could answer. 

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. 

Obito sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. “Uh, maybe we should grab some lunch first.” 

The main room had a few tables for the people staying there to sit at and take meals. There was no menu and no staff, but the innkeeper quickly came by their table with the lunch offering for the day. 

“So, what’s the plan?” Obito asked as they dug into their food. 

Kakashi shrugged. “I don’t actually know what there is to do here. I just wanted to see the samurai.” 

Obito grinned. “Then samurai it is! Don’t worry. I’m gonna make this the best vacation ever.”

***

Kakashi was going to die. 

His heart was pounding in his chest, his stomach was sick with nerves, and the flush in his cheeks had nothing to do with the freezing air. No, it was entirely to blame on Obito, pressed up against Kakashi’s side in a vain attempt to escape the cold, his hand still holding onto Kakashi’s from when he’d dragged him over to their current spot, watching some boys around their age train. 

“Oh, man,” Obito said, as their teacher launched into yet another demonstration. “I totally wish I could use the Sharingan right now, you have no idea.” 

Kakashi quickly glanced around to make sure no one had heard him. The area around them was abandoned, thankfully. Tetsu was not exactly a popular tourist destination, especially in the middle of winter. “I don’t think they would take kindly to that.” 

Obito elbowed him. “I’m not actually gonna do it! I’m not that stupid.” 

“Could have fooled me.” Kakashi kept his eyes fixed on the samurai-in-training. If he looked at Obito, he would spontaneously combust. 

“Whoa! Look at that!” 

Obito’s arm slipped around his waist and tugged Kakashi around to look at a different part of the training area. It didn’t mean anything, Kakashi was certain—it was just the easiest place for Obito to grab him, given how close they were standing together—but he still felt like he was on fire. 

“Amazing,” Obito gasped. 

Kakashi blinked, and took in the two samurai facing off in the training field, their blades flying through the air so quickly he could hardly see them. Obito’s mouth was wide open as he watched them—and, Kakashi realized, his eyes were bright red. 

“Obito!” Kakashi hissed, squeezing Obito’s arm. 

Obito turned to him and blinked, his eyes fading back to natural black. “Ah—shit, sorry. I got excited.” 

A quick glance around showed that no one had seemed to notice, at least. “Save your excitement for other things.” 

Obito stared at him blankly for a moment before grinning mischievously. “Other things, huh?” 

Kakashi rolled his eyes. “Mature. Be more careful. Come on, we should go.” 

Momentarily disappointed at the thought of leaving the training area, Obito soon perked up once again. “Yeah! I’m curious about Tetsu. I mean, they can’t only have samurai. Let’s go!” 

Obito didn’t let go of Kakashi as they returned to the main streets of the city. He probably wasn’t even thinking about it; he was probably just cold. Unfortunately, knowing that didn’t do anything to stop the heat under Kakashi’s skin or the butterflies in his stomach. 

Obito dragged them all over the city, stopping in every store that caught his eye. They bought roasted sweet potatoes from a street vendor, which warmed their hands while they ate them. Once they had finished those, the familiar, fishy scent of oden drew them to yet another vendor, who chatted with them about various sites in the city while he served them their skewers. 

After that, tired from their day of walking, they returned to the inn. 

“D’you think our room is ready?” Obito asked as he opened the door. 

The inn was more crowded, now, almost every table in the room filled with customers. There wasn’t a seat to be had at the bar, and Kakashi and Obito had to squeeze in to get to the counter. 

“Hi, ma’am!” Obito called cheerfully. Out of the corner of his eye, Kakashi noticed the man next to them glance over at them. 

“Oh, the _boyfriends_ ,” he said. “Enjoying the town?” 

Obito stared at him. Kakashi tried, in vain, to place where they might have met the man; Obito hadn’t mentioned that stupid cover story since the gate. 

That left only one person who the man could be, Kakashi concluded. “The samurai from the gate.” 

Obito smacked his fist against the palm of his hand. “Oh! I didn’t recognize you without all the stuff.” 

The man nodded. “Takamura.” 

The same name as the inn, Kakashi realized with a sinking feeling in his stomach. 

His fears were realized as the man said, “I live here. My mother runs the inn. But, as I was asking you, are you enjoying the town?” 

The man stared at them levelly. Obito, ever oblivious, grinned at him. “Yeah! We went to see the samurai. They’re amazing—oh, but, uh, you probably already knew that.” 

The man looked away from Kakashi, focusing on Obito. “It’s always a pleasure to meet someone who appreciates the samurai arts. However, I am surprised . . . I thought you would be more of a fan of shinobi.” 

Obito blinked at him. “Eh? Why would I be a fan of shinobi?” 

The man looked at Kakashi again, his gaze unblinking. “It was just an impression I had. Forgive me, I have to join my friends. Enjoy Tetsu.” 

Finally, the man left, taking two pitchers of beer with him to a table. The innkeeper appeared, a broad smile on her face. “Enjoy your stay, boys!” she declared as she placed a key in Kakashi’s outstretched hand. 

Kakashi grabbed Obito’s hand and dragged him upstairs before anyone else could ask them weird questions. 

“Kakashi—hey, wait, I wanted to see what was for dinner! Kakashi!” 

Kakashi shoved him into the room and shut the door behind him. He pressed his ear to the door and listened, but no one was following them. 

“Geez, what’s up with you?” Obito asked. 

Kakashi remained pressed to the door. “That man is onto us. Takamura.” 

“Eh? You think so?” Obito scratched at the back of his head and wrinkled up his nose, trying to think. Kakashi stared, unable to look away for some strange reason. “I thought he was just being friendly.” 

“Idiot,” Kakashi said, shaking himself free of his strange, Obito-induced trance. “Did you not notice all his weird, pointed comments about shinobi? And about us being _boyfriends_?” 

Obito tilted his head to the side. “Uh, yeah, I guess? I didn’t think it was that weird . . . you think it was weird?” 

“Yes, it was weird,” Kakashi sighed as he stepped away from the door. “I don’t think anyone followed us up here, so he must not be too suspicious, but we should be careful.” 

Obito shrugged. “I don’t think we have to worry that much. I mean, he’s one guy, and he’s on gate duty. We’re probably never going to see him.” 

“Did you miss him saying that he lives here?” Kakashi sighed. 

“So? I live at the Uchiha compound, and I’m never there,” Obito said. 

Kakashi rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because you never buy groceries so you always come running to my house.” 

“What’s the use in buying groceries when we’re out on missions all the time?” 

“Buy things that don’t go bad easily. Canned food. Dry goods.” 

“When I could have your dad’s home-cooked meals? No thanks!” Obito threw himself down on the bed, tossing down his bag, and then looked around. “Aw, man!” 

Kakashi looked around the room, but didn’t see anything out of place. “What is it?” 

“There’s only one bed! They gave us a single,” Obito groaned and hauled himself up. “C’mon, let’s go see if she has a room free with two beds.” 

Kakashi grabbed his arm. “Wait! We can’t do that. That samurai is still down there. He’ll definitely be suspicious if two people who are supposedly dating raise a fuss about having to share a bed.” 

Obito scratched the side of his nose. “We’ll tell him we’re, uh . . . waiting until marriage?” 

Kakashi stared at him flatly. “He’s never going to believe that.” 

Obito threw his hands up in the air. “What, so we’re just going to share that one little bed? Because one guy _might_ be a tiny bit suspicious of us?” 

Kakashi looked around Obito, to the bed. It was small, he had to admit, roughly the size of Kakashi’s bed at home. Kakashi’s bed had fit Kakashi and Obito comfortably when they were both smaller, but that was a few years and a few growth spurts ago. If they shared, the two of them would have to squeeze together to fit, a thought that brought a warm flush to Kakashi’s cheeks. 

He shook his head. “He might be one guy, but he has friends. All it takes is one little comment to his friends, and then the word spreads, and the next thing you know every samurai in town has an eye on us. We’ll have to make do. You can have the bed. I’ll take the floor.” 

Obito rolled his eyes and punched Kakashi’s arm. “Don’t be dumb. You’re not going to catch Obito Disease from sleeping next to me. I bet it gets freezing here at night, you’re gonna die if you sleep on the floor. Besides, I know it’s hard on your body when you don’t sleep in a bed.” 

That much was true—ever since the Kannabi Bridge mission, Kakashi often woke up stiff and sore when he slept on anything other than a bed. He dealt with it, because it was an inevitability on missions, and he never complained about it. He certainly hadn’t mentioned it to Obito. “What makes you say that?” 

Obito wrinkled his nose, a sure sign he was thinking. “Well, whenever we have long missions and can’t stop at an inn or something and have to sleep outside, you always move a little bit slower and more carefully, and sometimes you make painful faces. I mean, you wear a mask and all that, but I noticed the corner of your eye kind of scrunches up when you’re in pain.” He laughed sheepishly and rubbed at the back of his head. “I guess I just pay attention to you!”

Kakashi reiterated: he was going to die. This vacation was a doomed plan. He should tell Obito to back up his things, turn in their key, and take them back to Konoha before things could go even further downhill. 

But then Obito turned a blinding grin on him and said, “C’mon, let’s go grab something to eat and talk about our plans. Tomorrow’s gonna be great! That vendor gave me a bunch of great ideas about things to do together,” and Kakashi’s legs and willpower turned to jelly.

For better or for worse, they would stay for the rest of their vacation. If they were caught, Kakashi would let it be known that it was all because of Obito’s stupid smile.

***

“Kakashi, is it just me, or is someone following us?” 

Kakashi breathed out slowly and tried to ignore Obito’s arm, curled around his as Obito pulled him down the snowy streets of Tetsu. “So it’s not just me. I think it’s Takamura. I don’t think we’ll be able to shake him; he knows these streets better than us, and if we try too hard it will just look suspicious. I think we’re stuck with him.” 

Obito nodded thoughtfully. “I think I’ve got an idea.” 

Kakashi glanced at him doubtfully. “What are you planning?” 

Obito grinned. “Just trust me.” 

For five minutes, Obito made a show of touring the street, his arm tucked around Kakashi’s waist and driving Kakashi slowly insane, until he turned back as if to point out something Kakashi had missed and said, “Oh, hey, it’s Takamura! Takamura, over here!” 

Faced with Obito’s enthusiastic waving, there was nothing Takamura could do but join them from where he had been lingering, several paces behind them. Obito beamed at him as if he wasn’t aware Takamura had been following them ever since they had left the inn. “Is it your day off?” 

Takamura’s face was disguised by a thick scarf; all Kakashi could see of his face were his dark eyes. “It is.” 

“Are you running errands for your mom?” Obito chattered; Kakashi admired his ability to maintain his cheerful demeanor in the face of Takamura’s blank stare. “I get sent out to do that all the time at home! But if you’re not busy, I was wondering if you could show Kakashi and I around?” 

If it weren’t for Takamura, Kakashi would have shaken Obito until he coughed up exactly what he was thinking. 

Takamura dipped his head. “I would be glad.” 

“Great! Because some of these street vendors gave us advice on where to go, but I keep getting turned around and distracted,” Obito said with an easy laugh. “I don’t know where to go, so lead the way, tour guide!” 

Takamura was undoubtedly the worst tour guide ever, speaking maybe a sentence, if that, on each place he brought them. Obito didn’t seem to care, filling the air with cheerful chatter. Kakashi, for his part, attempted to ignore Obito’s arm around his waist and kept an eye on Takamura, just in case he pulled anything. At the moment he didn’t seem inclined to do anything, but that could change in a heartbeat. 

Takamura escorted them to various popular locations, and then, when Obito’s stomach growled, took them to a small restaurant that Kakashi suspected was run by people Takamura knew personally, since they greeted him familiarly. They took their seats around a booth, Takamura on one side and Obito and Kakashi on the other, and in moments a steaming hotpot was placed in front of them. 

“Nabe!” Obito cheered. “That’s perfect for the weather. Thanks for the food!” 

Obito devoured three bowls in short order, bottomless pit that he was, while Kakashi picked his way through his first bowl. He didn’t start his second bowl until Obito was on his fourth. Takamura’s eyes flickered between them, watching, as he scooped steaming slices of meat into his mouth. 

He watched them throughout the meal, but didn’t say anything until Obito had excused himself for the bathroom. 

“So,” he said, as Kakashi paid for the meal. “Is he also a shinobi, or just you?” 

Kakashi continued counting coins for the bill. “What makes you think I’m a shinobi?” 

Takamura held up a small book, not unlike Kakashi’s bingo book, open to a certain page. Kakashi was wearing a hat over his hair and wasn’t wearing any of his ninja gear, but it was still easy to recognize that the person in the picture was him. 

“Kakashi Hatake” was printed at the top of the page. In a cramped, messy scrawl, someone had written “The White Fang’s son!” 

Kakashi finished counting money and returned the remainder to his bag. “So?” 

“This is obviously you,” Takamura said. 

“Maybe I have a twin,” Kakashi said. Takamura stared him down. Kakashi nodded towards the page. “You’re a fan of the White Fang?” 

Takamura blinked and then did a double-take at the page. “Ah. That. I heard that he channeled chakra through a blade, a feat remarkably similar to samurai techniques.” 

Kakashi nodded. “He’s a fan too,” he said, nodding towards the bathroom door just as it opened. 

Obito, grinning, bounded back over to their table as Takamura slipped the book away. “Sorry, I’m ready to go now. What next?” 

Takamura looked at the clock. “If you’re interested, I believe we have time for a visit to a picturesque location, although it is a bit of a hike.” 

Obito nudged Kakashi. “Hear that? _Picturesque_. Sounds right up your alley, old man.” 

“Enjoying calming nature scenery does not make you old,” Kakashi said. “When you slip and fall in the snow, I’m going to laugh at you.” 

Obito stuck out his tongue, and just to be contrary started running around as soon as they got outside. “C’mon, slowpokes! Stop wasting daylight!” 

Kakashi sighed as he followed him. “Do you even know where we’re going?” 

Obito turned around so that he was walking backwards. “Uh, nope! Where are we going, Takamura?” 

“Continue straight. I will inform you when we reach the trail we need to take.” 

“Great!” Obito darted off without a care, plunging into the snowbanks to the side of the street with a gleeful laugh. “There’s so much snow here!” 

“It snows at home, too,” Kakashi said. 

“Yeah, but it always melts quickly, or gets swept away, or is all gross and icy,” Obito said. “Not fluffy and soft like this!” 

“It is still icy,” Takamura warned. “You should be careful.” 

At Takamura’s direction, they turned off the main road onto a small trail, still covered in snow. Obito gleefully stomped along the trail, allowing his feet to sink deep into the snow, while Kakashi and Takamura followed behind him. Eventually, the trail ended at a rocky cliff, which had a series of rocks and outcroppings leading up to the top of the cliff. It looked climbable, but calling it a path would be too generous. A frozen waterfall poured over the top of the cliff, icicles dangling over the iced-over pond below. 

“Oh, man, I bet this place is great in the summer!” Obito said. 

“The summer is not particularly warm here,” Takamura said. “However, the fall is larger due to the melting snow.” 

Obito ran over to the cliff. “Hang on, I’m gonna take a look!” 

“Be careful,” Kakashi warned. The last thing they needed was Obito using chakra to climb the cliff and making Takamura suspicious of him, too. 

Obito rolled his eyes. “Yes, _Mom_.” 

As Obito began to carefully climb the cliff—using only his hands and feet, and no chakra, to Kakashi’s relief—Kakashi wandered closer to the pond and brushed away the snow over the ice to see if he could see through it. 

“Are there fish?” he asked. 

Takamura nodded once. “Asleep at the bottom of the pond. Ice-fishing is popular this time of year, but this isn’t the best spot for it. There is a larger lake further outside of the city that people prefer to go to, but it is not a trip an ordinary person could make in a day. Unless you think the two of you could manage it.” 

As if on cue, Obito yelped, only to quickly call out, “I’m okay! Don’t worry!” 

“Probably for the best we don’t go,” Kakashi said. “That idiot over there would probably manage to fall in somehow.” 

“Hey! I heard that!” 

“Just focus on not killing yourself.” 

Obito blew a raspberry in response. “Mature,” Kakash sighed. 

“I reached the top! You should come take a look at this. It’s beautiful up here!” 

Kakashi stood and turned to find Obito had indeed reached the top of the cliff, although he hadn’t climbed on top of it yet, instead holding onto the ledge with his hands as he stared into the distance. He looked down and, spotting Kakashi watching him, grinned. “C’mon! It’s not a hard climb at all. I can help you, if you’re too much of a wuss.” 

Kakashi sighed and stepped closer. “I’m coming, I’m coming.” 

“Yeah, hang on, let me just finish climbing up—whoa!” 

Kakashi saw the moment Obito’s foot slipped off the outcropping just as he was about to climb up. His arms pinwheeled uselessly as he fell back. Kakashi surged forward, careless of how his unnatural speed would give Takamura additional evidence—there was no telling what dangers lurked under the snow. Obito might land on snow, or he might hit a hidden rock. Kakashi wasn’t about to take that chance, not when the mere sight of Obito falling sent his heart leaping into his throat. 

He reached the cliff just in time to catch Obito. They hit the snow, Kakashi underneath Obito, and lay there for a moment, breathing hard. 

“Thanks,” Obito gasped, as he sat up enough for Kakashi to wriggle out from underneath him. 

“I told you you were going to slip and fall,” Kakashi said. He got to his feet and brushed himself off, and then offered Obito a hand. Obito grasped his hand and let Kakashi pull him up, only to wince and sink back down to the ground. 

Kakashi knelt beside him. “What hurts?” 

“Ankle,” Obito groaned. 

Kakashi nodded and looked at Takamura. “Is there a clinic or a hospital nearby?” 

“I can take you to the doctor,” Takamura said. 

Kakashi gave Obito, still prodding at his ankle through his boot, a stern look. “You aren’t walking on that until we know it isn’t serious.” 

“What? But how am I supposed to walk? You aren’t just gonna leave me here, right?” 

“Don’t be stupid,” Kakashi said, and, without another word, put one arm under Obito’s knees and another around his back and hoisted him into the air. 

Obito’s hands scrabbled at Kakashi’s shoulders. “Whoa! Warn a guy!” 

Kakashi adjusted his grip on Obito and made his way back to the trail, carefully picking his way through the snow. Takamura led the way, escorting them down the trail and back to the city. 

After a moment, Obito relaxed, one arm loosely wrapped around Kakashi’s shoulders so that it rested on top of his backpack. “I could get used to this,” he said. 

“Enjoy it while you can,” Kakashi grunted. “You’re heavy.” 

“Rude,” Obito laughed. 

Kakashi didn’t respond, too focussed on not tripping and falling to respond to Obito. Takamura wasn’t much for conversation, and even Obito didn’t seem to be in the mood to talk, so they passed the rest of the trip to the clinic in silence. 

“A sprain,” was the doctor’s verdict, after poking and prodding at Obito’s bruised and swollen ankle while he complained enthusiastically. “Stay off it for six weeks.” 

He went on to give more detailed instructions, which Kakashi absorbed while Obito wilted with each word. Obito was silent and sullen when they left the clinic, Obito moving on his own with the aid of a pair of crutches, and didn’t speak until he’d flopped down on their bed in the inn. 

“Six weeks!” he whined. “What a way to ruin our vacation!” 

Leaving Obito to mope, Kakashi fetched a pillow to elevate Obito’s ankle and went to get some ice from the innkeeper. When he returned, Obito had resorted to flipping through some awful-looking bodice ripper from the bookshelves. 

_What Happened in Tanzaku-Gai,_ read the title. The author, according to the blurb, had also written the bestselling _The Shinobi Lover’s Code._ A quick glance to the bookshelf revealed that they also had access to that book. 

Obito snickered and turned the page, only to yelp as Kakashi placed the ice pack on his ankle. “Jeez, Bakashi! That’s cold!” 

“Then don’t be an idiot and sprain your ankle,” Kakashi said. Obito subsided, grumbling under his breath. 

They spent the rest of the day like that, Kakashi alternately putting the ice on Obito’s ankle and removing it while Obito skimmed the romance novel and read Kakashi the funny or dirty parts. The author’s true skill lay in having a very poor sense of both male and female anatomy. 

The innkeeper was nice enough to bring them dinner, so that Obito wouldn’t have to traverse the stairs on his crutches again, and Takamura appeared to take their plates down and give them painkillers he’d purchased from the local drug store, a surprisingly nice gesture coming from their personal samurai babysitter. 

Kakashi settled down on the bed next to Obito and let his eyes slip closed. He hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before, too distracted by Obito’s presence next to him to manage anything more than a light doze. Obito’s reading wasn’t particularly soothing—he kept giggling and going off on distracting tangents instead of reading—but somehow Kakashi still found it relaxing to listen to him talk. 

***

“Kakashi. Hey, Kakashi, wake up.” 

Kakashi jolted awake, fighting against the blankets tangled around his legs. “Gah!” 

“Sorry,” Obito whispered. “You looked like you were having a nightmare. You okay?” 

Kakashi managed to straighten out the blankets. “I’m fine.” 

Obito gnawed on his lip—a bad habit to cultivate. If you did it in the middle of the battle, you’d end up biting through your lip. “You’re going to bite through your lip in the middle of a fight if you keep doing that,” Kakashi said. 

“Want to talk about it?” Obito said. 

“Not really,” Kakashi said. Reliving the cave and Madara in his dreams was bad enough; he didn’t want to relive it in the waking world as well. He looked around the room for a distraction. “Why is the lamp on?” 

“Oh,” Obito said sheepishly. “I couldn’t sleep, so I turned the light on to read.” 

Kakashi settled back down and shut his eyes, determined to get at least a little more sleep. “That Tanzaku-Gai book again? Read it to me, then.” 

“Uhhh, it’s not that book,” Obito said. 

“The shinobi lovers one? That’s fine too.” 

“It’s not that one either. I, uh, decided to try out a different author.” 

“Good. Maybe this one will be better,” Kakashi said. “Read.” 

“Uh, okay. If you insist.” Pages ruffled as Obito picked up the book. “I’m going to start at the beginning, though. Or else you’ll be confused.” 

“So there’s enough of a plot for it be confusing if I miss the beginning? What is it called?” 

“ _The Gates of Konoha_ ,” Obito said. 

At least the title sounded better than the other two, Kakashi told himself. “Okay. Go ahead.” 

Obito cleared his throat. “The Sharingan was far more vivid than Kai had ever imagined. Red as freshly spilled blood, with a black pinwheel where a pupil should have been. The Uchiha loomed over him, pinning Kai against the wall of the Uchiha compound. Kai’s breath caught in his throat as the Uchiha stared down at him mercilessly, not even blinking. Had his mind been more present, he would have wondered if he was already caught in a genjutsu, but as it was he couldn’t look away from those brilliantly red eyes . . .”


	17. Chapter 17

“. . .Kai watched the retreating back of the Uchiha. ‘What did you say? I couldn’t hear you.’ The Uchiha didn’t turn around as he responded. ‘I said, call me Asahi. Now hurry up. Before you get captured again.” For a moment, Kai stood where Asahi had set him down after carrying him from the cave, as if paralyzed by an unnoticed poison. No one had ever rescued him before, not in such a way as Asahi had done—without a care for repayment or thankfulness, but simply because he cared about Kai. 

“‘Are you coming, or do I have to go back there and get you?’ Asahi was barely visible through the trees. Kai hurried to catch up, matching Asahi’s long stride with his slightly shorter one. ‘What about the mission?’

“Asahi said nothing for a long time. ‘Missions are useless,’ he said, at last, ‘without comrades to complete them with. Now, enough questions. We’re going home.’ 

“ _ Home.  _ Kai had never thought he would hear that word again, not applied to him, and unbidden, a smile crossed his face. ‘To Konoha,’ he agreed, and together they set off towards the gates of Konoha. The end.” 

Obito looked at the boy sleeping next to him. “Jeez, Bakashi, you sure have a talent for sleeping through the best parts. Well, I guess it made it easier to read.” 

He stared down at the very last page of the book—an advertisement for the third book in the series,  _ The Storms of Kumo,  _ coming out next month. The second book,  _ The Peaks of Iwa,  _ had been out for a year already. Obito would have to check them out; for better or for worse, he was invested in Asahi Uchiha and Kai. 

Seeing as how looking at Kakashi gave him a queasy feeling in his stomach, Obito had a feeling it was for the worse. 

He groaned and slumped back, letting his head smack against the headboard. “Stupid book,” he muttered, glaring down at the cover. That was what had caught his attention in the first place—the dark cover with the Sharingan in the center. He’d never read a book with an Uchiha as a main character before. If he’d known what type of book it was, he never would have picked it up. Then he wouldn’t be dealing with all these dumb thoughts and feelings. 

Like how cute Kakashi looked when he was sleeping. 

Obito tore his eyes away from Kakashi—no, he was not going to activate his Sharingan to memorize how Kakashi looked, that was weird and creepy, jeez Obito—and glared at the book. 

“This is your fault,” he told the book. “You and your stupid romance plot. Why couldn’t you just be an action book, huh?” 

He’d thought it was kind of funny, at first, how the serious, jaded Asahi Uchiha reminded him of Kakashi sometimes, and the cheerful, clumsy Kai was more like himself. As the book progressed, it had gotten less and less funny, and more and more like there was something Obito had been missing for a long time. He had a feeling he knew where this book was going, just like he had a feeling he knew the real cause of the queasiness in his stomach when he looked at Kakashi, curled up against Obito to ward out the cold that inevitably seeped into their hotel room. 

They wouldn’t be there for much longer, at least. Their vacation time was just about up; in the morning, they would leave Tetsu and head back to Konoha. Well, he said in the morning, but really it was more like in a couple hours—sharing a bed with Kakashi really hadn’t been good for his sleep. Everytime he laid down and closed his eyes, every single charged camping scene from the book ran through his head. Nothing ever happened during them, just like nothing happened while he was sharing the bed with Kakashi, but that didn’t stop him from thinking about it. 

He blamed his lack of sleep on his ankle—and that didn’t help matters any—but really, it was the book. And Kakashi being a stealth-cuddler. 

Beside him, Kakashi stirred. “Obito?” he mumbled. “Why’s the light on . . . does your ankle hurt?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Obito said. “A bit. I decided to finish the book.” 

Kakashi scowled. Obito couldn’t help but stare; he still wasn’t used to seeing Kakashi’s face without a mask. He always started out sleeping with it on, but it inevitably slipped down during the course of the night, revealing the small mole by the side of his mouth. 

“Without me?” 

Obito laughed. “Sorry, you kept falling asleep and missing all of it.” 

Kakashi waved a hand at him. “Give it. I’ll read it.” 

“Right now? We’re leaving in a few hours, you know,” Obito said. “You’re not gonna finish it in time.” 

“I’ll take it and read it on the way.” 

“It’s not ours!” 

“Please. Like anyone’s going to notice,” Kakashi said. “It’s stuck in between a bunch of trashy bodice rippers that probably no one reads.” 

“Just buy one when we get home. It’s not like they only sell them in Tetsu.” At least, Obito hoped they didn’t. If they did, he might have to become surprise penpals with Takamura. Obito’s plan to put him at ease had worked—once Obito and Kakashi allowed him to tag along, he became a lot more relaxed. Not that Obito had been able to go much of anywhere with his ankle. As it turned out, crutches and the snow did not mix well. 

Kakashi sighed. “Whatever you say.” 

Obito hoped that by the time they got home, Kakashi forgot all about the book. He didn’t want to know what Kakashi would think of it. Some things were better left to the imagination—and Obito’s imagination was plenty active, for better or for worse. He’d had plenty of daydreams where Kakashi read the book and had the same revelations Obito was having, and he’d had plenty of daydreams where Kakashi read the book and tossed it aside in disgust. 

Obito would rather not find out which one was closer to reality. Kakashi was important to him, more important than Obito had ever expected when they’d first met in the Academy. He didn’t want to risk that. He’d just have to live vicariously through Asahi and Kai. 

Kakashi rolled over and slid out of bed, hissing at the cold. “We might as well get ready to go, since we’re both up. I’ll pack our things.” 

Obito grimaced at his wrapped ankle. “I can’t wait to get a medic to take care of this for me.” 

Kakashi tossed Obito’s clothes over to him. “Having medical ninja is definitely one advantage we have over the samurai.” 

Obito laughed as he dressed and tossed his pajamas back to Kakashi, who packed them up in their bags. “Careful there, you sound almost like you plan to go to war with them.” 

“If Takamura tries to follow us to the border, I might,” Kakashi said. “I am not walking through the snow all the way to the border with your ankle in that condition.” 

“It’s gotten better,” Obito said. It still hurt to put weight on it, but he’d handled worse. 

Kakashi gave him a doubtful look, but didn’t say anything as Obito fetched his crutches. After a final check for any forgotten belongings, they checked out of their room and left the city. Takamura accompanied them to the gate, but didn’t follow them past that point. The moment they were out of sight of the village, Obito and Kakashi ducked off the road so Obito could summon up a portal back to Konoha. 

In an instant, they were back in the forests surrounding Konoha. The air was crisp and cold, and the ground muddy from rain, but there was no snow. Obito had opened the portal closer to Konoha than normal, out of respect for his crutches, but it still took them an hour to reach the gate. 

“Hey, it’s Obito and Kakashi!” the chuunin at the gate called as they approached, elbowing his partner. “You two sure took your time!” 

Obito shook one of his crutches at him. “Yeah, we were in an awesome battle! There were six of them, and they were all jounin-level shinobi—” 

“Obito slipped and sprained his ankle,” Kakashi said. 

The chuunin roared with laughter. Obito stuck out his tongue at Kakashi. “Way to make me sound completely lame.” 

“They already know you’re completely lame,” Kakashi said. “Come on, let’s go to the hospital.” 

The hospital was busy when they arrived. At least one mission had gone badly, and the waiting room was crowded with medics determining who could wait and who needed to be whisked away to surgery. The nurses took one look at Obito, judged that he wasn’t about to keel over and die, and shuffled Kakashi and Obito into a corner. 

It was a few hours before Rin, bags under her eyes, emerged from surgery and spotted them. 

“Obito! Kakashi!” she exclaimed, picking her way through the injured shinobi still waiting for their turns. “Are you hurt?” 

Obito laughed sheepishly. “Not seriously. Just a sprain, but I was hoping someone could fix it up . . .” 

Rin’s smile twisted. “Ah, I’m not cleared for anything more than what you’ve already received, by the looks of it. I’ll see if anyone is free.” 

Rin left as soon as she had appeared. Obito frowned after her; he hadn’t seen as much of Rin as he would like, since her kidnapping. The Hokage and the council hadn’t wanted to let their new jinchuuriki out of the village until she had a handle on her new abilities and increased chakra. Obito was usually out of the village on missions, and when he was in the village, it seemed like Rin was always busy. Maybe she was avoiding him. 

Kakashi’s elbow dug into his side sharply enough to make him yelp. “I can practically hear you thinking.” 

“That hurt, Bakashi!” Obito rubbed at the sore spot and his ribs. “I dunno. I was just thinking that I haven’t spent much time with Rin lately. I hope she’s doing okay.” 

“She’s fine,” Kakashi said. Obito blinked at him, surprised. “Kogane told me so. She’s been spending a lot of time with him and Shizune.” 

“Are we really gonna take Kogane’s word for it? Rin would tell him she was fine and he would just accept it at face value,” Rin said. 

“True enough,” Kakashi agreed. “But Shizune is more. . . emotionally perceptive than Kogane.” 

Obito snickered. “A brick wall is more emotionally perceptive than Kogane.” 

Kakashi shrugged. “I’d like to deny it, but . . .” 

“It’s Kogane,” Obito finished. 

The door to the waiting room opened, and Shizune stepped into the room. She scanned the area, and smiled when she spotted Obito and Kakashi. “Obito, right this way. Rin told me you had a sprain?” 

Obito hopped up and grabbed his crutches. “Yeah, I went to a doctor but I was hoping you could help it along a little more.” 

“I’ll see what I can do,” Shizune said, holding open the door for him as he joined her. 

She led him to a small examination room and let him get situated “I just finished another patient,” Shizune said. “I’m technically supposed to be taking a break.” 

“What? Hey, don’t waste your break on me!” 

“It’s alright,” Shizune said, as she unwound the bandaged wrapped around his ankle. “My shift is over after tonight, anyways.” 

“How long was this one?” Obito asked. 

“Twelve hours,” Shizune said. Obito flinched on reflex as her hands glowed green and she held them over his ankle, but her chakra was cool and calming. “Good, I can tell you’ve kept your weight off it.” 

“Kakashi carried me back to town after I injured it,” Obito laughed. 

“I can speed up the healing process,” Shizune said. “It should feel a bit tender afterword, and I would refrain from training and going on missions for another two weeks, but you should be able to walk around on it at least. This should only take half an hour or so.” 

Obito watched her work for a few minutes. “How’s Rin been doing? I haven’t seen her around much recently.” 

“She’s been working hard,” Shizune said. “We have a new division of civilian doctors now, for dealing with non-critical injuries and illnesses. She’s in charge of them, like I’m in charge of the medic division.” 

“And what about the, uh, jinchuuriki thing?” 

“I think you should ask Rin about that,” Shizune said. “She doesn’t like to talk about it much.” 

Obito swallowed around a lump in his throat. “Oh. Do you . . . you don’t think she . . . is Rin upset at me? For what happened back then?” 

“Of course she isn’t,” Shizune said. “But like I said, you should talk to her about it. Her next day off is this Friday. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to keep Kogane busy while you talk to her.” 

“Huh? Kogane?” 

“They’ve been spending a lot of time together recently,” Shizune said. The green glow around her hands dimmed and vanished. “There, all set. Like I said, you can walk on it, but avoid anything too strenuous.” 

Obito hopped off the bed and tested it out. His ankle ached slightly, but not badly enough to bother him. “You’re a life-saver, Shizune.” 

“You can pay me back by talking to Rin,” Shizune said as she ushered him out of the room. “I take it you can find your own way out? I have to get back to surgery.” 

“Work hard!” Obito said, shooting her a thumbs up. Shizune gave him a small smile before heading down the hallway. Obito went in the opposite direction, back to the waiting room. To his surprise, Kakashi was still there, flipping through a book. As Obito walked up, he slipped away the book and stood. 

“All set?” Kakashi asked. 

“Yeah,” Obito said. “You didn’t need to wait for me.” 

Kakashi shrugged one shoulder. “I wanted to ask if you were coming over for dinner. I don’t know if Dad’s home. If he isn’t, I don’t want to have to go grocery shopping on my own.” 

Obito laughed and slung an arm around Kakashi’s shoulder, ruthlessly shoving down the twinge of happiness at the warmth of Kakashi’s body pressed against his own. “I get it! I’m your pack mule.” 

Kakashi avoided his gaze. “Let’s go home. I’m hungry.” 

Obito had to admit, he was hungry as well. They’d taken longer in the hospital than he had thought, and it was dark now. Hopefully the shops would still be open, or they’d end up eating canned food or something. When they approached the house, however, it was clear to see that it wasn’t empty as they had left it. The lights were on, and Obito could hear quiet murmurs of conversation from inside. 

He grinned at Kakashi and put a finger to his lips. 

“Oh, no,” Kakashi said. 

“C’mon,” Obito cajoled. “It’ll be like playing ninja again!” 

“Obito, we  _ are  _ ninja,” Kakashi sighed, even as he joined Obito in crouching down and creeping along the side of the house, keeping just below the level of the veranda. 

The doors from the living room to the garden were obviously open, as Obito could clearly hear the conversation inside when they reached the living room. Obito peeked over the veranda, Kakashi doing the same beside him, and saw Sakumo sitting in the living room, his back to them, staring at the wall. 

“—you be going back?” Sakumo said, glancing towards the kitchen. 

“Naruto is with Tsubame. He’ll be fine for another day.” Narumi Uzumaki walked into view, bearing a bottle of sake and two cups. Obito waggled his eyebrows at Kakashi, who rolled his eyes in response. “He’s getting used to me heading out now and then.” 

“I didn’t go out on missions until Kakashi was in the Academy,” Sakumo said as he accepted a cup. 

Narumi poured the sake and sat down next to Sakumo, his back to them as well. “Officially, it’s the same for me, but you know how it is. Rin’s seal, the village barriers, the works.” 

“They should give you a break,” Sakumo said. “Rin’s seal is fine. She hasn’t had a problem since you put it on her.” 

Narumi laughed and leaned against Sakumo, and their cups clinked together. “Well, maybe you can put in a good word for me, huh, Godaime-sama.” 

Obito’s mouth fell open, and Kakashi’s hand instantly slapped over it. Obito glared at him, only to find that Kakashi wasn’t looking at him at all. His eyes were wide open as he stared at his father and Narumi. 

“Don’t call me that,” Sakumo groaned. “I don’t know what the Sandaime is thinking. Me, Hokage?” 

“You’re the best option,” Narumi said. “Jiraiya is doing important business out of the village, and no one can really take his place. Dan and Tsunade are running the hospital, and they have two little kids to take care of. That’s, like, four full-time jobs between the two of them. And Orochimaru is, uh . . . Orochimaru.” 

“Did you know he picked up another student?” Sakumo said. 

Obito made what he hoped passed as a questioning look at Kakashi. 

“Kabuto,” Kakashi mouthed, making circles with his hands and holding them up to his eyes like glasses. Obito shook his head; he’d never met the kid, as far as he could remember. 

“I didn’t,” Narumi said. “Doesn’t that make three?” 

“If we don’t count the other two on his genin team,” Sakumo laughed. “Poor kids. I’m pretty sure he trained them enough to pass the chuunin exam just so he could get rid of them.” 

“Sounds like Orochimaru,” Narumi laughed. “So, his other student?” 

“A kid named Kabuto, from the orphanage, I think,” Sakumo said. “I’ve seen him running around after Kakashi and Anko now and then. He’s still an Academy student, but he’s already persuaded Orochimaru to sign him on as an apprentice.” 

“You can do that?” 

“There’s no rule against it, so long as it isn’t a full apprenticeship. He’s not allowed to do missions or anything, but Orochimaru can train him.” 

“So Orochimaru has another kid,” Narumi laughed. 

“Now, now, they’re not his kids, they’re his lab assistants,” Sakumo said, prompting more laughter from Narumi. 

“Pocket money? No, no, those are their wages!” Narumi said, though his laughter. 

Sakumo shook his head and sighed in mock sadness. “Face it, Orochimaru is a dad in denial. Even my own son has been taken in by his wily ways and superior offerings of pocket money. I guess that leaves me with no choice but to get together with Orochimaru to finally unite us as a family.” 

Kakashi made a face. 

Narumi snickered. “Leaving me for Orochimaru, huh?” 

“Don’t worry,” Sakumo said, his voice playful. “You’re the only man for me.” 

“I better be,” Narumi said, his voice low. He leaned in close to Sakumo—Obito gulped; his eyes felt dry, but he didn’t dare blink—and pulled back with a laugh. Narumi stood, picking up the bottle of sake, and retreated to the kitchen, out of view. 

“Uh, have you been grocery shopping?” he asked. 

Sakumo ran a hand through his hair and stood. “Yeah, when I got home a few days ago. I grabbed whatever, I don’t know what we can make.” 

“Well, uh, it’s just the two of us, ya know? So just something small is fine, I guess,” Narumi said, with another laugh. 

Obito looked over to Kakashi, who was thinking so hard Obito’s head hurt just looking at him. He nudged Kakashi and tilted his head towards the front of the house. Kakashi nodded, and they crept back to the front and entered through the door. 

“We’re home!” Obito called as they replaced their shoes with slippers. 

“Kakashi, Obito!” Sakumo exclaimed, greeting Kakashi with a hug and a quick ruffle of his hair. “How was your mission?” 

“Good,” Kakashi said. 

Sakumo turned to Obito, tugging him into a hug as well. “Looks like you’re both still in one piece. You boys hungry?” 

“Starved!” Obito said. 

“Dinner for four!” Sakumo called over his shoulder. Narumi emerged from the kitchen and waved at them. 

Obito fumbled for what to say for a minute; he knew why Narumi was there, but Narumi didn’t know he knew, and he knew where Naruto was but Narumi didn’t know that he knew that either, and Obito hadn’t really realized how spying on people you knew could be so awkward. “Uh, how’s it going?” he said, mostly because it seemed like the safest option and didn’t sound completely stupid. 

“Pretty good,” Narumi said. “Got some new pictures of Naruto for you! He’s started walking around already. What do you want for dinner?” 

“Omurice,” Kakashi said. 

Sakumo smiled at that. “Omurice, huh? There’s a request I haven’t heard for awhile. Can you do omurice, Narumi?” 

“I’m the omurice master, ya know!” Narumi declared. “Naruto loves the stuff.” 

Narumi returned to the kitchen, while the three of them settled around the table. Obito tried to find something to say, but he was afraid that if he opened his mouth he’d blurt out something stupid about what he and Kakashi had seen. Kakashi, beside him, was silent. 

“Sakumo’s got news!” Narumi called from the kitchen. 

Sakumo grimaced. “Ah, I wasn’t going to mention it yet . . .” 

“Who knows when you’ll get another chance?” Narumi said. “I know how many missions you go on. When was the last time you all had dinner together?” 

“Six months ago,” Kakashi said. 

Sakumo chuckled sheepishly. “Fair point. Well, you see, the Sandaime . . . he’s nominated me as the Godaime. The daimyo’s happy enough with it, and he’s going to inform all the jounin in the next couple weeks, so I suppose you would find out soon enough anyways . . .” 

A smile spread across Obito’s face. He knew, but it was different hearing it officially. “That’s awesome! My shishou’s gonna be the Hokage!” 

Kakashi nodded. “I think you’ll be a good Hokage.” 

“I hope so,” Sakumo said. “The current plan is to have the inauguration in January.” 

“A new Hokage for the new year!” Narumi declared. 

“Whoa, so soon?” Obito said. “That’s, like, a month.” 

“A little more than a month,” Sakumo said. “We’re going to wait until the genin have graduated and the chuunin exams are over. Get all the heavy stuff out of the way, you know.” 

“Logical,” Kakashi said. 

Obito glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. It was hard to tell how Kakashi was feeling, with everything but one eye hidden, but Obito would swear something was off about him. He would have asked if he was feeling okay, but that would open up a whole other can of worms given Sakumo was sitting right there. 

“So, what’re your plans as Hokage?” Obito asked. “Longer lunch breaks for Academy students? ‘Cause that would make six-year-old me over the moon.” 

Sakumo talked about his various thoughts and plans until Narumi brought them the omurice, after which they switched to stories about Naruto. Kakashi was quiet throughout the meal, only speaking up occasionally. It wasn’t that unusual for Kakashi, but he was usually more talkative around his dad, and Obito couldn’t help but be a little worried. 

Was it about his dad and Narumi? Did Kakashi think it was weird? He hadn’t said anything when he and Obito had talked about it before, but they’d been joking then—they hadn’t seriously thought there was anything going on. The thought soured Obito’s stomach, but he forced himself to keep eating until it was all gone. 

“Thanks for the food, Narumi,” he said. “I should probably be heading home, though.” 

“Stay the night,” Kakashi said, already getting up and heading to his bedroom, leaving the remainder of his omurice. “Night, Dad, Narumi.” 

“Goodnight!” the two men called. 

Kakashi shut the bedroom door behind them and stared at Obito. “Uh, want me to make a blanket fort?” Obito guessed. Kakashi nodded. “Sure thing. One blanket fort, coming right up!” 

He constructed the fort quickly, with the usual combination of ninja tools and bedroom furniture, and then settled himself on the bed. Kakashi joined him moments later and pressed four seals around the walls of the fort. 

“There,” he said. “Now no one will overhear us.” 

“Okay, good, because that wasn’t just me, right? There was totally something going on with your dad and Narumi,” Obito blurted. 

Kakashi nodded. “I thought so too. So, you agree?” 

“I thought they were gonna kiss or something,” Obito said. “You, uh, don’t think it’s weird, do you?” 

Kakashi gave him a blank look. “It’s my dad, Obito. Of course it’s weird.” 

“Oh, uh, yeah, I guess that would be weird,” Obito said, running a hand through his hair. He couldn’t help but grin in relief—so that wasn’t what was bothering Kakashi after all. “D’you think they’re, you know, dating?” 

“I don’t think so,” Kakashi said. “Narumi pulled back quickly, and they both seemed embarrassed afterward.” 

Obito flopped down. “You thought so too, huh? I wonder why they aren’t dating.” 

“Distance. Other obligations,” Kakashi said. 

“Not wanting to ruin a friendship,” Obito said. He rolled over and sighed. He didn’t know about distance or obligations, but he knew what it felt like to not want to risk a friendship. “D’you think they’ll ever get together?” 

“Most likely not,” Kakashi said. “They’re shinobi of different villages, and my father is about to be Hokage. The logistics alone would make a relationship nearly impossible.” 

“Yeah, I guess,” Obito sighed. “That’s kind of sad.” 

Kakashi’s hand clenched in the blankets. “. . . It is.” 

Obito rolled over, wrapping himself up in a blanket, and grinned at Kakashi. “Maybe we should get them together.” 

Kakashi laid down beside him. “Don’t be ridiculous.” 

“D’you know if Narumi was ever married or anything?” Obito wondered. He couldn’t remember the man ever mentioning a relationship, but he didn’t spend that much time with him. 

“Not that I know of.” 

Obito glanced over at Kakashi, and found him staring up at the roof of their fort. “What’s the matter?” 

“Nothing.” 

“C’mon, I can tell,” Obito said. “You’re acting weird. Is it about your dad and Narumi? Your dad being Hokage?” 

“I’m proud of him for being nominated as Hokage. I think he’ll be good at it,” Kakashi said. 

Obito propped up his head on one hand. “So what is it?” 

Kakashi stared upwards. “I don’t remember my mother. It’s never bothered me before. I . . . don’t know why it bothers me now.” 

“Your mom, huh?” Obito said. “I don’t remember my parents at all. Grandma never really talked about them, either. She said I took after both of them once. You look like your mom, right?” 

“Do I?” Kakashi turned his face towards Obito and tugged down his mask. Obito’s mouth went dry. Half of Kakashi’s face was scarred from the cave in, but the other half was smooth. He had a small mole at the corner of his lips. His soft, pink lips. 

“Uh. I dunno what your mom looks like,” Obito said, forcing a chuckle. 

“Ah. That’s right. Hang on.” Kakashi slipped out of the fort. Obito peeked out and watched him rummage through the closet, peeking in boxes until he found what he was looking for. Kakashi returned to the fort with a framed picture. 

“My parents at their wedding,” he said, offering it to Obito. 

Obito had actually seen a picture of Kakashi’s mother once before, when Sakumo had shown him pictures, but he was again struck by how alike they looked. His mother was more tanned and her hair was brown, but otherwise their features were pretty much the same. 

“She was really pretty,” he said, flushing as he realized he had indirectly said that Kakashi was pretty. He hoped Kakashi didn’t notice. He looked over the picture again. 

“I have more,” Kakashi said, leaving once again and returning this time with a shoebox full of picture frames. “My dad gave them to me.” 

There weren’t many pictures. One of them was Sakumo as a genin, with two kids Obito didn’t know, and then another one of him with Kogane’s dad and Kakashi’s mom. The second picture had Kakashi’s mom again, this time as an adult, with three genin. 

“Hey! That’s Kushina, and Mikoto-ba-san!” Obito exclaimed. 

“They were my mom’s genin team,” Kakashi said. 

“So you knew Kushina already,” Obito mused, setting that picture aside for another one. This one had a whole bunch of adults, again at Kakashi’s parents’ wedding. Narumi was there, at Sakumo’s side, along with Tsunade, Dan, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya. A massive dog stood next to Kakashi’s mom. 

Obito couldn’t help but smile. They all looked so happy, standing there. “Must be nice.” 

“What?” Kakashi leaned over to look at the picture. “The wedding?” 

“Yeah, weddings are nice. I’ve never been to one, but I’ve always wanted to. At this rate the first one I’ll end up going to is my own,” Obito laughed. 

“You want to get married?” 

“Huh? I mean, yeah, eventually,” Obito said. Kakashi hummed thoughtfully. Obito glanced at him, but even without his mask on, Kakashi’s expression was inscrutable. “Hey, Kakashi? D’you, you know, like anyone?” 

Kakashi looked at him blankly. “I like plenty of people. You. My dad. Narumi. Kogane. Rin.” 

Obito waved his hands. “Not like that! I mean, you know. Do you  _ like  _ someone.” 

“Oh—you mean—” Kakashi looked away. “. . . No. I don’t.” 

“Oh. Uh, me neither,” Obito said. He wasn’t sure how to feel about what Kakashi had said; on one hand, at least Kakashi didn’t say he liked someone else, but he hadn’t said anything about liking Obito either. 

Obito sighed and let his head drop to the bed. “Life is hard.” 

Kakashi snorted. “You’re realizing this now? Move over, you’re taking up the whole bed.” 

Obito scooted over, and Kakashi stretched out alongside him. “You’re not gonna get out the futon?” 

“Don’t want to,” Kakashi said around a yawn. “Besides, we’ve been sharing for three weeks.” 

“Yeah, I guess,” Obito agreed, tugging the blanket over them. He’d been kind of looking forward to getting a good night’s sleep, for once, without being distracted by Kakashi lying next to him. Although, he had to admit he didn’t really mind it. Kakashi was pretty cute when he was sleeping.

Kakashi sleepily smacked Obito’s face with his hand. “Stop thinking. You’re keeping me up.” 

“Sir, yes, sir.” Obito said. “Night, Kakashi.” 

“Night, Obito.” 


	18. Chapter 18

“Whatcha reading, Kakashi?” 

Kakashi looked up from his book to find Rin, Kogane, and Shizune standing beside the table he’d been sitting at while waiting for Obito. They were supposed to do some light training after lunch, but Obito, as usual, was late. “Oh, Rin. Just a novel. I read part of it at an inn, so I decided to buy a copy for myself. It’s about a serious, rule-abiding Uchiha and his lackadaisical partner.” 

Rin giggled. “Sounds like you and Obito in reverse. Are you here for lunch?” 

“I’m waiting for Obito. Would you like to join us?” 

“Sure. It’s been awhile since I talked to Obito,” Rin said as she slid into the bench across from him with Kogane and Shizune. “You two are always out on missions.” 

“It’s been settling down recently,” Kakashi said, slipping the book back into a pouch. “Now that the rebuilding is done.” 

The door to the restaurant opened, this time to admit Obito, gasping for breath and flushed pink. “Sorry I’m late!” 

“Only an hour,” Kakashi said. 

“Shisui was pestering me. He’s such a pain,” Obito sighed. “Ever since I beat him sparing he hasn’t left me alone. He’s gotten worse since he learned shunshin—you wouldn’t believe how fast he is. He leaves behind an  _ afterimage _ . It’s ridiculous.” 

The waitress came by to take their orders, and brought them to the table shortly. The lunch rush had long since finished, so they had the restaurant almost entirely to themselves. It was nice to have some time to talk to his friends; Rin, Shizune, and Kogane were either working at the hospital or out on missions. Now that he thought about it, Kakashi hadn’t seen Gai in a while, either. Maybe he would seek him out for training while Obito was recuperating. 

Obito, for his part, seemed unusually quiet. Throughout the meal, he kept glancing across the table at Rin. An unpleasant feeling settled in Kakashi’s stomach. Briefly, it occurred to him that Obito had professed to have a crush on Rin when they were younger, and that maybe he still did, but Kakashi pushed those thoughts out of his mind. It wasn’t any of his business who Obito had a crush on, and it shouldn’t bother him if Obito did have a crush, anyways. 

He continued to tell himself this throughout the meal, which somehow ended in Shizune and Rin being invited to train with them, while Kogane had to return to the hospital for his shift. As they exited the restaurant, however, Obito paused in the street. 

“Hey, uh, Shizune, Kakashi? You mind going ahead? I wanted to talk to Rin about something.” 

“Of course,” Shizune said, before Kakashi could ask any questions. “We’ll meet you at the training ground.” 

Obito smiled so gratefully that Kakashi had no choice but to follow along with Shizune. The question of what Obito could want to talk about tumbled around in his mind. Maybe Obito did have a crush. Maybe he was going to ask Rin out. The thought bothered him, for some reason—only because if Obito had a girlfriend, it would complicate their training schedule, Kakashi told himself firmly. 

To distract himself, he pulled out his book and flipped it open to where he had left off. 

“Oh,  _ The Gates of Konoha?”  _ Shizune said. “I like that book. It’s good, isn’t it?” 

“It is. I’m planning to buy the second book once I’m finished,” Kakashi said, as his eyes scanned over a depiction of a fight between Asahi Uchiha, Kai, and two ninja from Kumo. 

“The second one is good, too. It’s actually from Asahi’s point of view, instead of Kai’s,” Shizune said. “I can’t wait for the third one to come out. But I’m surprised, Kakashi. I didn’t think you enjoyed romance novels.” 

Kakashi stopped. “Romance novels?” he repeated, dumbly. 

Shizune blinked at him. “Well, yes. Didn’t you know? The first book is mostly building up the relationship. It isn’t as heavy-handed as most romance novels, which is part of why I enjoy it, but I thought the romantic cues between Kai and Asahi were fairly obvious.” 

“I just thought they were partners,” Kakashi said. “Like Obito and I.” After all, many aspects of the book reminded him of things he and Obito had said or done or felt. 

Kakashi stared at the book. “It’s . . . a romance?” 

“It is . . . are you okay, Kakashi?” 

Kakashi slipped the book into the pouch and took a step back. “I’m fine. Tell the others I won’t be able to join them.” Before Shizune could protest, Kakashi slipped away and vanished into the crowd. 

He had a bookstore to find. 

***

“I’m an idiot.” 

Kakashi stared up at the ceiling of the bookshop,  _ The Peaks of Iwa  _ resting on his stomach, still open to the last page. It ended on a cliff-hanger, because of course it did. The next book wasn’t out yet; Kakashi had already asked. 

Once again, Kakashi read the last page, as Asahi vowed to find Kai and pull him out of whatever hole he had dug himself into. The book had ended on a poor note, with Kai turning traitor in the middle of the climax with nothing more than a whispered apology. That wasn’t what had him bothered, though. 

The second book was even more of a romance novel than the first, even Kakashi could tell that much, and yet every thought Asahi had about Kai insisted on reminding him of how he thought about Obito. How he felt about Obito. 

Kakashi flipped back towards the middle of the book—he’d marked the page, just because it had answered a question he had never truly thought to ask. 

_ Kai leaned in towards Asahi, his purple eyes sparkling with mirth. “I can’t believe it. Are you jealous, Asahi?”  _

_ Asahi ruthlessly quashed the sour nausea roiling in his stomach, threatening to put his partnership with Kai at risk. Who Kai flirted with was his own business, whether it was for a mission or not. “Of course not,” he said.  _

_ Kai laughed, and Asahi knew he had answered too quickly to fool him. “You know I was only getting information.” Kai touched Asahi’s shoulder, the warmth of his hand a burning imprint against Asahi’s skin. “It doesn’t mean anything.”  _

_ Asahi wondered, as Kai leaned in, if Kai’s gestures towards him meant anything, or if they were as empty as his flirtations towards the men and women they encountered during their missions.  _

“Jealous,” he said. “I’m jealous.” 

Not of Obito—of Rin. Just because Obito might have a crush on her. Because he might ask her out. 

“Jealousy is a stupid emotion,” he said. 

The owner of the bookstore poked his head into the reading nook, where Kakashi had spent the last few hours holed up. “We’re closing up.” 

Kakashi nodded and got up, taking the book with him—he’d already paid for it, before he started to read it—and heading for the door. Just as he arrived, however, it opened to admit Obito, breathless and pink-cheeked. 

“Hey, you’re not closed yet, are you? I need to buy something—oh, Kakashi!” 

“Five minutes!” the owner called. 

Obito didn’t move, still staring in surprise at Kakashi. “So this is where you were! Are you feeling okay? Shizune said you weren’t feeling well or something.” 

“I’m fine,” Kakashi said. “What did you talk to Rin about?” 

“Oh.” Obito sheepishly ran a hand through his hair. “I was, uh, talking to her about what happened with the kidnapping. You know. ‘Cause, we hadn’t really talked much since then, so I thought she was avoiding me, and maybe she was mad at me or something, but she’s not! She felt bad and thought that I was upset at her, but I wasn’t, so it was just a bit misunderstanding!” 

“It wasn’t about liking her?” Kakashi asked. He immediately regretted it, but there was no way to pretend he hadn’t said that. 

Obito’s nose wrinkled up. “Uh, what? Wait, are you talking about that crush I had on Rin when I was, like, thirteen?” He burst out laughing, and a hot flush rose to Kakashi’s cheeks. “Jeez, Bakashi, that was forever ago!” 

“Only three years,” Kakashi muttered. 

“You’re ridiculous,” Obito said, but his voice was fond. Not that it did much for Kakashi’s embarrassment; if anything, his cheeks felt even warmer.

The shopkeeper appeared, hands on his hips. “Out! We’re closed!” 

“What? Aw, c’mon, I just wanted one book!” Obito protested. 

The shopkeeper waved his broom at them. “Out! Out!” 

“Okay, okay, we’re going!” Obito said, grabbing Kakashi by the wrist and pulling him out of the shop. Behind them, the door slammed shut and locked. 

Kakashi cleared his throat. Obito’s hand was still holding his wrist, and it was incredibly distracting for such a simple touch. “What book were you looking for?” 

Obito let go of Kakashi’s wrist. “Oh, uh, nothing really. Just the sequel to that book I was reading at the inn.” 

Kakashi reached into his pocket and held out the book. “Here. I just finished it. You can have it.” 

He didn’t want to read it again. It would just remind him of what he really felt about Obito, how he wanted more than just Obito’s friendship now that he knew more was an option. 

“Oh, really? Thanks,” Obito said, accepting the book. “Wait a minute, did you ditch training to go read?” 

Kakashi shrugged one shoulder. Obito laughed. “Bookworm! I’ll give it back to you once I finish. I probably won’t finish it as quickly as you.” 

“That’s okay. Take your time,” Kakashi said. “Are you coming over?” 

“Nah, Shisui roped me into training with him,” Obito said. “Itachi’s probably gonna be there. You could come if you want.” 

“Maybe another time,” Kakashi said. He needed some time to sort through his new realizations. 

He liked Obito. He  _ liked  _ Obito. Like his dad had liked his mom, once upon a time. Like his dad liked Narumi, maybe. 

“Yeah, sure. I should be going before Shisui tears the village apart looking for me. See you tomorrow, Kakashi!” Obito trotted off, still holding the book as he waved goodbye. 

The book, Kakashi realized, that still had the pages and passages he had marked as relevant to his feelings for Obito. 

“I’m an idiot,” he said. 

He couldn’t let Obito read that book. He was oblivious, but even he couldn’t have missed the connection between Asahi and Kakashi and Kai and Obito. If Obito looked at the book, he could figure out how Kakashi felt about him. 

There was nothing for it: Kakashi would have to steal back the book before Obito could read it. 

The first stage of the plan was simple: find a bookstore that was still open, and also had a copy of the book for sale. It was late, but Kakashi managed to find a few bookstores still open, although only the last one offered the book. With that, he had his decoy book ready to switch out. The next part of his plan: replace the book he had given Obito with the one he had bought. This would be tricky. 

Obito had gone to the Uchiha compound. Kakashi, as he wasn’t part of the clan, wasn’t welcome in the compound without an escort. The only Uchiha he really knew were Itachi and Shisui, both of whom might let something slip to Obito. That left infiltration as the only option. 

Kakashi waited until night had truly fallen to go to the Uchiha compound. Most people would be in their beds, asleep. The few guards posted were easy for him to avoid, and Kakashi was soon on his way to Obito’s house. Obito, luckily, lived towards the edge of the compound, away from anyone else. 

The house was dark and silent when Kakashi arrived. Obito had locked his front door, but he’d given Kakashi a key ages ago. Kakashi walked silently through the house until he reached Obito’s room. Obito had left his bedroom door slightly open, but Kakashi was careful as he pushed it open, knowing the door had a tendency to creak. 

Obito snored softly. Kakashi slipped through the door and scanned the room for the book. The first book was there, on the table—Obito must have bought a copy of his own—but there was no sign of the second book until Kakashi looked at the bed. 

Obito’s head was resting on top of the book, his hand curled around the edge. 

Kakashi swallowed, stepped closer, and hoped that Obito was as deeply asleep as he seemed. He gently nudged Obito’s hand away from the book, not daring to breathe until it was finally free. He pulled gently at the book, easing it slowly out from under Obito, stopping whenever Obito stirred. 

The book was halfway free. Kakashi breathed a soft sigh of relief. 

Obito’s eyes opened, gleaming red in the darkness of the room. In a flash, Kakashi found himself flat on his back, a kunai held to his throat, Obito straddling his hips. 

Obito blinked. “Kakashi? What are you doing?” 

Kakashi cleared his throat. “The book. I was going to replace it with a different one.” 

“Why?” Obito asked, his grip on the kunai relaxing. 

“I underlined some things in the book,” Kakashi said. 

“Trust you to treat a novel like a textbook,” Obito laughed. “But it’s not like I care. Pretty much all of my books are second hand.” 

Now that Obito said it, Kakashi had to admit that perhaps he had overreacted. Obito probably wouldn’t have thought twice about Kakashi underlining some of the passages in the book, even if they were rather romantically charged. Still, there had to be some way out of this hole he had dug himself into. 

“So why did you underline it, anyways?” Obito asked, flipping through the book and squinting at the pages. 

“The prose was good,” Kakashi said. 

“That’s all? Then why’d you try to take it back?” 

“It’s weird to underline a romance novel.” 

“Well yeah, I’d probably make fun of you for that,” Obito said. His eyes narrowed. “Wait, you knew it was a romance novel?” 

“Of course I did,” Kakashi said. 

Obito snorted. “Here I thought you’d be too oblivious to notice.” 

“I’m not as oblivious as you!” Kakashi protested. 

“Oh yeah? I bet I can figure out the real reason why you underlined stuff in this book,” Obito said, holding the book aloft. 

“No, you can’t,” Kakashi said. There was no way Obito could figure it out. 

Obito’s grin turned devilish. “So there is a reason!” 

“No, there isn’t,” Kakashi said. 

“You already said there was,” Obito sing-songed. “And I’m not giving this back until I figure it out.” 

Kakashi scoffed. “Fine, do what you want. Just get off me already.” 

Laughing, Obito stood and offered Kakashi a hand up, playfully keeping the book away from him. Still, there was nothing to worry about. There was no way Obito could figure it out. No way at all. 

***

“I’m never going to figure this out.” 

Obito let the book fall onto his face, blocking out the sun, only for it to be lifted off moments later. He sat up and looked around; Kakashi and Kogane were still going at it in the middle of the training field, while Rin, next to him, was reading the blurb on the back of the book. 

“What are you reading?” Rin asked. 

“Just a novel. I bet Kakashi that I could figure out the real reason why he underlined a bunch of stuff in it, but I can’t figure it out,” he sighed. “He said it was because the prose was good.” 

“Well, let’s see if I can figure anything out.” 

As Rin flipped through the book, Obito watched Kakashi and Kogane’s fight. Kakashi had gotten pretty good with his mokuton, sending little roots to trip Kogane at critical moments. Kogane’s Spirit Release wasn’t particularly useful for sparring, but he’d learned how to punch from Tsunade. If he wasn’t holding back, a punch from him could shatter bone, and his chakra scalpel could easily put an opponent out of commission. As Obito watched, Kogane kicked at Kakashi, who substituted with a log. Kogane’s foot hit the log right in the center, and it exploded into splinters. Roots burst out of the ground, trapping Kogane’s other foot. Kakashi emerged from the forest, and Kogane fended him off with his remaining hands and foot. 

“Is this a romance novel?” 

Obito rubbed at his nose. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t make fun of me, it’s good!” 

“No, it is. I thought it sounded familiar; Shizune reads this series,” Rin said. “I didn’t think Kakashi liked romance novels, though.” 

“I didn’t think so either,” Obito said. “He’s marked it up like a textbook or something.” 

Rin giggled. “That’s very Kakashi. Although, that does give me an idea . . . it’s a little weird, though.” 

Obito turned to face her fully. “What is it? You gotta give me a hint at least, my ninja pride is at stake here!” 

“Have you noticed that the main characters are kind of like you and Kakashi?” 

“Yeah,” Obito admitted reluctantly. He’d done more than noticed. He’d dwelled on it like a pathetic loser. 

“Well, I’ve noticed that most of the passages underlined pertain to Asahi’s feelings towards Kai,” Rin said. “It could be that Kakashi related to these passages in some way. I can’t say for sure, of course. But it does seem very like Kakashi to use a romance novel as a textbook for his own emotions.” 

“Yeah, that does seem like some thing he’d do, the weirdo,” Obito snickered, only to stop as he turned her words over in his mind. “Wait, what do you mean, his own emotions?” 

Rin stood and dusted herself off. “I’ll leave that part to you. Kakashi! Kogane! My turn!” 

The roots retreated, leaving Kogane free. Kakashi left the area they’d chosen for their spar, high-fiving Rin as he passed her on his way to sit next to Obito. Kogane and Rin nodded to each other, and the next instant they were in motion, exchanging rapid blows, tinged with the green of medical chakra and the red of the Sanbi’s chakra. 

“Rin’s improved at using the Sanbi’s chakra,” Kakashi noted as he took a seat beside Obito and started to go through some basic stretches. Before Kogane, he’d fought Obito, and Gai before that, and the three fights had left him sweaty despite the cold weather. Obito tried to resist staring at all the ways his uniform clung to him, but, well, he was only human. 

“Uh, yeah! She told me she’s been training everyday and even talking to the Sanbi, and that they have an understanding or something? She can manifest three full tails, but she doesn’t do it for sparring because it would freak people out,” Obito said. “I wanted to take her someplace where she could show me, but I think people would notice if she suddenly went missing. She’s got a million ANBU guards.” 

“She has six,” Kakashi said. “We could handle them easily. But we probably shouldn’t.” 

“Yeah, probably,” Obito said. 

“At least not until my father is sworn in,” Kakashi said. 

Obito snickered. “Planning to abuse your position already, huh, honorable son of the Hokage?” 

Kakashi shuddered. “Please, never say that again.” 

Obito leaned against him, teasingly fluttering his eyelashes. “Oooh, young master, show me your jutsu!”

“. . . Stupid.” 

Obito pulled back slightly to look at Kakashi’s face. Kakashi was looking away from him, his gaze fixed on the spar, but Obito could see a faint, pink blush peeking out from above his mask. He’d put it up to the cold weather, or the heat of summer, or any other reason the previous times he’d noticed it, but now it just made him think of what Rin had suggested. 

He was dying to ask Kakashi about it—but what if Rin was wrong? Well, maybe he could play it off as a joke, or say that Rin had said something weird and pin the blame on her. Did he risk it? Could he? 

Obito had to ask. Otherwise, he’d blurt it out at some horribly inopportune time, like in the middle of a fight, and then Kakashi would be so surprised he would get gutted or beheaded or something. But he couldn’t now—Rin and Kogane were right there, and he just knew that Kogane would come over and say something awkward at a key point in the conversation if Obito brought it up now. Not to mention that Obito was supposed to fight Rin next, and his turn was bound to arrive before they finished their conversation. 

There was only one way to get out of this without any awkward conversations. 

The world came into sharp clarity as he activated his Sharingan. Kakashi barely had time to make an inquisitive noise before Obito grabbed him and tugged him into a portal, bringing them out on the top of the Hokage monument. That way, if the conversation went sour and he needed to make a quick escape, he could just take a flying leap off the Yondaime’s head.

“Obito, what?” Kakashi said, his voice clearly irritated. “I wasn’t done stretching. And I still have to fight Rin. I wanted to see how my mokuton does against the Sanbi.” 

“Do you like me?” Obito blurted. 

Kakashi’s eye went wide. 

Obito backtracked. “Uh, I mean, I was looking at that passage, and I was wondering if maybe they reminded you of me and you.” 

“No,” Kakashi said, so casually it was almost suspicious. “That would be ridiculous.” 

Obito squinted at him. “Are you sure? Because you’re blushing.” 

“You’re imagining things.” 

“The Sharingan doesn’t imagine things.” 

“You ripped that line from  _ Peaks of Iwa. _ ” 

“So? It’s a good line! And that’s beside the point!” Obito pointed at him. “You like me, and I’m gonna prove it!” 

Kakashi’s eye narrowed. “And how are you planning to do that, exactly?” 

No time to think—Obito surged forward, grabbing Kakashi by the shoulders, and tugged Kakashi forwards. Their lips crashed together, Kakashi’s mask soft against his lips. 

Shit. The mask. Obito had forgotten about the mask. He reached up to pull it away, only for the mask to be yanked down before Obito could so much as touch it. Kakashi’s lips parted against his, their teeth clacking together painfully. Obito pulled back to prepare himself to try again, this time without any teeth-clacking, but Kakashi followed him. His mouth was warm, soft, and tasted kind of like miso soup. 

Obito never wanted to stop kissing him. 

Eventually, he ran out of breath and had to pull away. “Wow. So, uh, how was that for proof?” 

“You better not have done that just to mess with me,” Kakashi said. 

Obito waved his hands desperately. “No! No, that’s not it at all! What I mean is, uh, I like you too! A lot! So, wanna be my boyfriend? Or something?” 

Without the mask, Obito could see Kakashi’s blush even more clearly. His own cheeks felt equally red. 

“You’re an idiot, Obito,” Kakashi said, and then wrapped his arm around Obito’s shoulders and pulled him close. 

Obito didn’t smile, but only because he was pretty sure it might ruin the kissing. As soon as they separated again, he was beaming. He wrapped his arms around Kakashi and pulled him into a bone-crushing. 

“Wahooo!” he screamed into the wind. “My boyfriend is the most amazing shinobi in the whole damned village!” 

“Obito!” Kakashi complained. 

Obito activated his Sharingan and opened a portal. “C’mon, we’ve gotta go tell Rin and Kogane!” 

“What—Obito, wait, we only just started dating—” 

Obito only laughed and pulled him through the portal. He was the happiest he’d ever been, and he didn’t care who knew it. He’d tell the whole damn village they were dating, if he didn’t know it would irritate Kakashi to be gossiped about. 

He leaned in for one last kiss. “I like you, Kakashi.” 

Kakashi grumbled, but still kissed him back. “I like you too, Obito. Just please don’t tell the whole village yet.” 

“Our friends?” 

“You can tell our friends.” 

“And the whole village later?” 

“Don’t push it,” Kakashi said, and together they stepped through the portal. 


	19. Chapter 19

The January after Naruto turned two found Narumi returning once again to Konoha. This time, however, he wasn’t going on his own. They were going for the Chuunin Exams and Sakumo’s inauguration, so he was accompanied by both Tsubame and Naruto. They arrived just in time for the third portion of the exams, the elimination tournament. 

Narumi looked up at the stadium and bounced Naruto on his hip. “Look at that, Naruto! That’s where we’re going to watch the exams.” 

“Big!” 

“Yeah, it sure is, isn’t it. Hey, Tsubame! Where are we going to be sitting?” 

Tsubame, who had been in the middle of speaking to a Konoha ANBU, turned to face him. “I had assumed that you would want to be in the Hokage’s box with me. I have it on good authority that Sakumo will be there as well.” 

Narumi laughed sheepishly. “You know me too well. It won’t be an issue, having Naruto there?” 

“Of course not,” Tsubame said. “I daresay he will be better company for me than anyone else there.” 

With that, he swept into the building. “I think he likes you more than me,” Narumi said to Naruto before following after him. 

The Kage box was already filled with ANBU from all Uzushio, Suna, and Konoha. Sarutobi sat in the center, Sakumo standing right behind him. The Kazekage sat to his left, a man with red hair and another with brown hair standing behind him. An empty chair sat to the Hokage’s right, but Tsubame pulled it backwards and to the side rather than sit in it, with a smooth gesture between Narumi and the seat. 

Narumi gave him a brief smile as he sat down, Naruto in his lap. “Thanks.” 

One of the ANBU left, probably to get another chair, but in the meantime Tsubame stood next to the Hokage. “Hokage-sama. Kazekage-sama,” he greeted. 

The Kazekage turned to face Tsubame and nodded his head. Narumi noted, with some surprise, that he didn’t seem to be related to Gaara at all; his hair was a deep blue, so dark it was almost black, and his eyes were yellow. If this was Gaara’s father, they didn’t look a thing alike. “Uzukage-sama.” 

While they exchanged greetings and made nice, Sakumo slipped over to Narumi’s side. “Who’re the two with the Kazekage?” Narumi whispered. 

“The one with the red hair is Sasori of the Red Sand,” Sakumo whispered. “The puppet-user, and Chiyo’s grandson.” Narumi nodded; his suspicions on that front had been correct, then. “The one with brown hair is Rasa, the Kazekage’s successor.” 

Narumi’s eyebrows rose--so that was Gaara’s father. “He’s going to be the next Kazekage?” 

“Once the Sandaime retires. Which probably won’t be anytime soon,” Sakumo chuckled. “He’s not much older than Tsubame.” 

There was a brief moment of shuffling as the ANBU finally brought another chair for Tsubame. Sakumo smiled down at Naruto. “And Naruto! You’ve gotten so big, I almost didn’t recognize you.” 

“Wanna snack!” Naruto declared. 

Narumi fished out a pouch of applesauce and let him have at it. “How’ve things been with you? Looking forward to being Hokage?” 

Sakumo groaned. “I feel like I’ve rewritten my speech ten times. It never fails to put Obito to sleep.” 

“What about Kakashi?” 

“He pretends to listen and tells me it’s good afterwards,” Sakumo said. “But If I ask him for details, he can’t tell me a thing. I even tried reading it to Heiwa and Nawanuke.” 

Narumi laughed. “How’d that go?” 

“Heiwa told me it was long and boring, and Nawanuke kicked me somewhere that shouldn’t be mentioned in polite company,” Sakumo said. 

“Ouch. That bad a speech, huh?” 

“Apparently. Seeing as I don’t want to get assaulted by all of Konoha for a bad speech, I was hoping you’d take a look at it,” Sakumo said. “People like it when you talk to them! I need some of your magic, please.” 

Naruto, bored of the discussion and his applesauce, wriggled off Narumi’s lap and ran to peer over the edge of the balcony. He waved enthusiastically at someone--probably not anyone he actually knew, although Narumi supposed he could have been waving at some of the genin from Uzushio. Katsuro, the youngest of the children taken from Kiri, was down there with his genin, who Narumi sometimes hired to watch Naruto when he was busy with a fuinjutsu experiment. 

“Just ditch the robes and the Inuzuka will wolf-whistle so loudly no one will be able to hear your speech,” he said to Sakumo, quietly enough that most of the others in the box would find it difficult to listen in. 

“Oh, come on! I haven’t been wolf-whistled at in years. You’ve been talking to Jiraiya too much,” Sakumo accused. 

Narumi grinned at him. “You know that some of them are still secretly pining for you and your wolves. Your sexy, sexy wolves.” 

Tsubame snorted inelegantly, and promptly tried to disguise it as a sneeze. Narumi and Sakumo exchanged grins. 

"Anyways," Narumi continued, "yeah, I can look at that speech for you. No problem." 

"Right now?" 

"Right now?" Narumi echoed. "But the exams are about to start." 

Sakumo pulled a scroll and a worn-down pencil from his vest. 

"You carry it around with you?" Narumi asked. 

Sakumo shrugged helplessly. "I've been trying to edit it in my free time, but it just keeps getting longer." 

"Well, one scroll isn't too bad," Narumi said. 

Sakumo reached into his vest and pulled out two more scrolls. Narumi gave him a look. Sakumo shrugged again. 

"Right," Narumi sighed. "Well, we might as well get started. You can share my seat--this is going to take a while." 

The exam fights going on in the background were distracting at first, as were Tsubame's play-by-play explanations to Naruto, but after awhile Narumi tuned them out almost completely, only occasionally looking up when Naruto let out a particularly excited shout. Sakumo, sitting half on the seat they were sharing, was the worse distraction. He had an arm draped around the back of the chair, and occasionally he would brush against Narumi, which never failed to send a shiver down his spine. 

"Okay," Narumi said at last. "I cut out all the sentences with kanji I don't know, and then I got rid of all the bits that didn't make sense without those sentences, so that got it to about half the size. So that's a start." 

“Narumi, you are a lifesaver,” Sakumo sighed. 

“I’m not done yet!” Narumi declared. “I’m gonna get this thing down to one scroll if it’s the last thing I do!” 

“Oh! Not that sentence. I like that one.” 

“Too late! It’s gone.” 

He tore through the speech throughout the first matches, but managed to finish in time for the semifinals. All three of Katsuro’s genin had managed to make it, and Naruto was cheering them on enthusiastically from his seat on Tsubame’s lap. 

“Katsuro did good work with them,” Narumi noted, as he watched two of them face off against each other, drawing out the match to showcase their skills. 

“He did,” Tsubame agreed. “Their experience in their last exam served them well.” 

“You’ve already decided to promote them, haven’t you,” Narumi said. 

“Their talents are wasted on babysitting,” Tsubame said. 

The match finally ended, one of the genin getting taken out by a neat fuinjutsu trap, and they moved onto the finals. 

“What’s the plan for after the exams?” Narumi asked. 

“Tsunade’s invited everyone over for dinner,” Sakumo said. “And no getting out of it, Tsubame! She’ll hunt you down if you don’t show up.” 

Tsubame sighed. “Must I?” 

“Jiraiya’s going to be there!” 

“That isn’t a draw.” 

“Heiwa and Nawanuke will be there. You know you want to see them,” Sakumo cajoled. 

Tsubame hesitated, and then sighed. “Oh, very well. If you insist.” 

“Great!” Sakumo exclaimed. “Now someone else can get kicked in the nuts for once!” 

The Hokage descended into a coughing fit. 

Tsubame sighed. “Why am I friends with you?” 

***

The exams ended up taking only one day, with the finals wrapping up just in time for dinner. Tsubame was swept away before Sakumo or Narumi could get a word in edgewise, leaving them to take Naruto and make their own way to the Senju compound. 

The moment they knocked on the door, Tsunade yanked it open and levied them with a glare. “You didn’t bring Tsubame.” 

“ANBU took him away,” Sakumo said. 

Tsunade jabbed a finger at his chest. “No excuses! Now turn right around and go get him. Narumi, you can come in. Heiwa and Nawanuke are somewhere around here, I’m sure Naruto would rather play with them than stand out here all night.” 

Sakumo sighed and trudged back into the night. Narumi set Naruto down and watched him wander off into the house. “I brought birthday presents for Nawanuke and Heiwa,” he said. 

“Oh, good, something new for him to wreak havoc with. What is it this time?” Tsunade asked. 

Narumi produced a book, the kind with cardboard pages that were easy for kids to turn. “A book for Heiwa! She’s reading already, right?” 

“Reading she can do. It’s getting her to stop that’s the real issue,” Tsunade snorted. “I can already tell you she’ll love it.” 

“And for Nawanuke . . . rubber bands!” Grinning, Narumi produced a large package of colorful rubber bands. 

Tsunade sighed heavily. “He’ll love them. I hate them already. Well, go on, you might as well give them to him now. It’s almost his birthday, anyways.” 

“Should I give Heiwa the book?” he asked, as he stepped into the house and removed his shoes.

“Yeah, why not,” Tsunade said. “Nawanuke! Heiwa! Ji-chan has presents for you!” 

Narumi didn’t take more than a step into a house before a blond boy nearly ran right into him. “Present!” he demanded, holding up a hand. 

Tsunade put her hands on her hips. “What do we say first?” 

“Present, please!” he said, in the same tone. 

“Good enough,” Tsunade said. 

Narumi produced the rubber bands and deposited them into his hands. Nawanuke scowled at them. “What’s that?” 

“They’re rubber bands. You can do all kinds of stuff with them. Like this, see?” Narumi opened up the package and fished out a rubber band. He hooked the band around his thumb, stretched it back with his other hand, and then let it fly with a snap. Nawanuke’s mouth fell open as the rubber band vanished. 

“Cool!” he exclaimed, before racing off with his prize. 

“Thanks for showing him that one,” Tsunade said wryly. “I was hoping he wouldn’t figure it out for a few years.” 

Narumi grinned at her. “Just doing my job as the cool uncle.” 

Tsunade’s eyes moved past him. “Heiwa, what are you doing over there? Come on, say hello to Narumi-ji-chan.” 

“Hello, Ji-chan,” Heiwa said, emerging from behind the couch. 

“Hey there, Heiwa,” Narumi said, holding out the book. “Got a present for you. I heard you like to read.” 

At that, she nodded enthusiastically and ran up to take the book. “Thank you, Ji-chan,” she said, at a stern look from Tsunade. She immediately opened up the book, a kid’s book that introduced them to basic fuinjutsu elements throughout the story. Naruto demanded to have it read to him pretty much every night. 

The door opened, and Kakashi and Obito tumbled into the door, hair mussed and cheeks flushed. “Sorry we’re late!” Obito called cheerfully. “Got a little lost on the road of life!” 

“That is a lie,” said Kogane, coming in through the door behind them. “You were kissing in the middle of the street.” 

“Yep! Thanks, Kogane, for letting everyone know!” Obito said, just as cheerfully. 

“You’re welcome.” 

Rin popped in through the door. “Is there a reason why we’re all standing in the entrance?” 

“Yes!” Shizune piped up from the back of the group. “Can we go in? It’s cold out here.” 

“You heard her! Move your asses, or I’ll move them for you!” Anko shouted. 

Obito made a quick escape, tugging Kakashi along by the hand. “Is Naruto here? I wanna see him!” 

Kogane lined up their shoes as Anko shoved her way into the hallway. “Outta the way!” she said, as she kicked off her shoes and made her way to the kitchen. “Kabuto, quit being a weirdo and get in here! And close the door behind you!” 

A small boy with round glasses and grey hair entered the house behind Shizune, shutting the door behind him. “Thank you for having me, Senju-shishou, Kato-shishou,” he called. 

“My latest protege,” a voice rasped into Narumi’s ear. 

Narumi yelped and jumped back. “Orochimaru! Don’t do that!” 

Orochimaru smiled, a sight that was as unnerving as it ever was. “I wouldn’t startle you if you didn’t let your guard down. Who knows what could happen.” 

“You’re trying to creep me out on purpose,” Narumi accused. 

“Now, why would I do that?” 

With that, Orochimaru drifted off into the kitchen. Narumi shivered and stepped away from the entrance. Naruto and Nawanuke were in the living room, attempting to shoot rubber bands at each other and laughing uproariously, while Heiwa was sitting on the couch, flipping through the book he had given her. Shizune and Rin had found the supply of sodas and helped themselves; Anko was nibbling on pocky--which she had probably brought herself--and hovering around them. Obito, Kakashi, and Kogane had all somehow managed to get their hands on beers; Kogane kept making faces every time he sipped from his, but he had yet to put it down. Dan was in the kitchen, talking to Kabuto, while Tsunade and Orochimaru had settled themselves at the table with a massive bottle of sake. Narumi had no doubt that they would polish it off on their own, and still be ready for more. 

The door swung open, and a cheerful shout resounded through the house. “Guess who’s back in town?” Jiraiya called. 

Orochimaru barely looked up from his sake. “Oh. It’s you.” 

Tsunade cracked her knuckles. “You’ve got a lotta nerve, showing up here after publishing that trash you call a novel. That ‘busty blonde’ had better not be based on anyone in particular.” 

Jiraiya threw his hands in the air. “Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is purely coincidental!” 

Tsunade snorted. “You wish it had a similarity to actual events.” 

“You aren’t the only busty blonde in the world,” Jiraiya said, with a sly grin at Narumi. “Narumi knows!” 

Narumi laughed awkwardly at the reminder of the incident, which had involved a mission gone wrong and the use of a certain Sexy Jutsu as a distraction. Tsunade’s eyes narrowed in suspicion as they landed on him. 

Thankfully, the door burst open again before she could question him, admitting Sakumo and, just behind him, Tsubame. “Finally tracked him down!” Sakumo declared. “Now, how about dinner?” 

“Ready to be served!” Dan called from the kitchen. 

“Everybody squeeze in,” Tsunade called above the din of the house, smacking her hand against the table. “Kids! Dinner!” 

Narumi ended up squeezing in next to Tsubame and Sakumo. Naruto had insisted on sitting with Nawanuke, between Tsunade and Dan; Narumi suspected Nawanuke had brought the bag of rubber bands to the dinner table. Heiwa had insisted that Kogane sit next to her, and everyone else had squeezed in wherever they could. Orochimaru, sandwiched between Tsunade and Jiraiya, looked particularly murderous over the arrangements. 

The arrival of the food and the pouring of fresh cups of sake had everyone in better spirits before too long. Even Orochimaru stopped looking like he was going to stab Jiraiya every time the man laughed too loudly. The teenagers still cleared off as soon as they finished eating, seizing a few remaining cans of beer and all of the soda for themselves; Kabuto, with a brief glance between the adults lingering over the sake and the teenagers heading out to the yard, elected to go with the teenagers. 

Tsunade kept the sake coming, and before long even Narumi was feeling the effects. Judging by the flush on everyone else’s faces, he wasn’t the only one. Sakumo had slumped back in his chair and looked to be on the verge of falling asleep, while Dan had actually fallen asleep. The kids outside had quieted down, and he suspected that most of them had left. 

Tsubame set aside his cup and stood. “I should be going. I am certain there will be plenty more pleasantries for me to suffer through tomorrow.” 

Narumi looked up at the clock and winced. “Ah, yeah, I should be heading home with Naruto as well.” 

Naruto, who had previously been nodding off, shot upright at this words. “Don’ wanna go home! Me an’ Nawa are playing!” 

“Oh, let him stay,” Tsunade said. “The kids can have a sleepover, and you can pick him up in the morning.” 

“You sure?” 

“Yeah, yeah. What’s one more?” 

“Thanks. I’ll come by in the morning to pick him up,” Narumi said as he followed Tsubame to the door. 

“Keep Tsubame out of trouble!” Tsunade called. 

Narumi shivered Tsubame opened the door and they stepped out into the night. He’d gotten used to the perpetual summertime weather of Uzushio. He already longed for the warmth of the house; it wasn’t too late to go back and claim Sakumo as his personal space heater. 

They hadn’t taken more than a few steps away from the house before Tsubame paused and turned around to face Narumi. “You don’t have to accompany me, you know. I’m more than capable of returning to the apartment by myself. I know you would rather be with Sakumo.” 

Narumi laughed sheepishly and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m that obvious, huh?” 

Tsubame slowly lifted his hand and rested his fingertips against Narumi’s chest. “Your heart, as ever, is an open book to me.” 

Narumi could only stare down at his bowed head. 

After a few heartbeats, Tsubame pulled away, a small, false smile twisting his mouth. “Apologies. I may have overindulged.” 

Before he could step back further, Narumi wrapped one arm around his shoulders and one around his waist and pulled him in. Tsubame resisted for a moment, but almost immediately went limp. 

“Release me,” he muttered. “This is improper.” 

“C’mon, when was the last time you let someone hug you?” Narumi said. 

Tsubame thought for a moment. “Naruto. This morning.” 

“Okay, before that,” Narumi said. 

“Naruto. Yesterday, at bedtime.” 

“Anyone other than Naruto?” 

Tsubame thought that one over for a little longer. “I believe it was Katsuro. Sometime last week.” 

“Anyone who isn’t basically your kid or nephew?” Narumi asked. Tsubame didn’t typically welcome hugs from Narumi anymore, and he wasn’t particularly close to anyone else as far as Narumi knew. “I dunno, your wife?” 

“Not her. Touching her makes me sick.” 

Unsure what to say to that, Narumi said nothing, until Tsubame sighed. “I apologize. I told you I overindulged.” 

“I know exactly what you need,” Narumi said. Not giving Tsubame any room to protest, he turned them both around and led them back to the door, kicking it open with his foot. 

Tsunade looked up in the middle of pouring a fresh round of sake as they entered. “What, did you two forget something?” 

“Nope! I’m here for a tradeoff.” Narumi steered Tsubame to the table and pushed him onto a seat, pulling Sakumo up from the table in the same motion. He waved over his shoulder as he tugged a bemused Sakumo to the door. “I’ll be back in the morning for Naruto!” 

“Yeah, yeah, get out of here!” Tsunade called. “C’mon, Tsubame, help me put the kids and Dan in bed, and then we can really let loose.” 

“I’m not drinking anything you tried making yourself,” Tsubame said, and then the door slammed shut. 

Narumi tucked his arm through Sakumo’s and started off down the street. “Sorry about that,” he said. “I figured Tsubame needed some company other than me.” 

“He’s always been close to Tsunade and Orochimaru, ever since they were kids,” Sakumo agreed. “It’s good for him to spend some time with them. Although I don’t see what that has to do with dragging me off.” 

Narumi grinned at him. “What can I say? I just wanted the pleasure of your company.” 

“That makes two of us,” Sakumo said. “C’mon, I’ve got a cup of tea with your name on it.” 

“That sounds perfect.” 

***

Narumi had only seen Sakumo look as nervous as he did standing up in front of all of Konoha once before, and that was at his wedding. He did look good in the robes though; they suited him. Narumi had a pretty good view of the event; he had been placed at the front of the audience, along with the rest of Sakumo’s friends and family. 

Sakumo cleared his throat, and then cleared his throat again. “My fellow shinobi,” he began, only to hesitate. 

A sharp whistle pierced the air. “Take off the robes, wolf-boy!” 

“Yes, thank you, Tsume,” Sakumo said, but he was smiling now. “As I was saying . . .” 

He launched into his speech properly, this time. After a few moments, everyone sitting beside Narumi visibly relaxed. 

“Oh, thank god,” Tsunade groaned. “He made it shorter. I was certain we’d be stuck here for hours.” 

“Oh good,” Obito whispered. “I was worried I’d fall asleep, and I don’t know how to sleep standing up so I’d fall over, and that would be really embarrassing.” 

“Would you be quiet,” Orochimaru hissed. “I am trying to see if he says anything about my funding.” 

“Orochimaru, he’s not gonna mention funding in his inauguration speech,” Jiraiya whispered. “Besides, if Minato didn’t do anything to your funding, you know Sakumo isn’t going to.” 

“I still say Sensei should have made me the Godaime,” he muttered. 

“We  _ know _ ,” Jiraiya and Tsunade said in unison. 

Tsubame, up on stage next to the Sandaime, was glaring daggers at them. Narumi waved Naruto’s hand at him. 

“Would you please be quiet,” Kakashi said. “Everyone behind us is listening to us instead of the speech.” 

“Yeah, well, everyone behind us should mind their own business unless they want a foot up their ass,” Tsunade muttered. 

“I don’t think your foot will fit there,” Kogane said. 

“It will if I put a little effort into it,” Tsunade said. 

A few people behind Narumi shifted nervously. 

Obito leaned around Kakashi. “Hey, Narumi, how long are you and Naruto going to be in Konoha?” 

“We have to leave tomorrow,” Narumi said. 

“Aw, I wanted to spend more time with Naruto.” 

“You’ll see him again,” Narumi said. 

When he glanced at the stage, Sakumo was looking right at him, wearing a smile that Narumi couldn’t help but return. 

The speech ended sooner than he expected, and just in time for Naruto to start getting restless. Narumi handed him off to Obito and hopped up on the stage; Sakumo was surrounded by well-wishers, but Narumi managed to wade through the crowd and make his way to Sakumo’s side. 

Sakumo, in the middle of shaking hands with some noble from the Capital, beamed at him. “How was it?” 

Narumi grinned at him so fiercely that his cheeks ached. “It was brilliant. You were brilliant.” 

Sakumo laughed. “How would you know? I don’t think you listened to a thing I said!” 

“I’ve listened to you practice so much, I don’t need to,” Narumi said. 

A chuunin popped up next to them. “Hokage-sama, they want to take a picture of you and the Sandaime for the paper?” 

“Oh, yeah, of course,” Sakumo said. “Narumi, I’ll see you afterwards, if I get a chance. If not--” 

Sakumo yanked him into a hug. For a moment, Narumi couldn’t breath, but he couldn’t have said if that was from the force of the hug or something else. “I’m glad you could be here,” Sakumo said, as he pulled back. 

“I’m glad I could be here, too,” Narumi said. “Now, go on. Your adoring public awaits.” 

Sakumo paused and glanced back, as if there was something he wanted to say, before simply waving and vanishing into the ground. 

Narumi couldn’t help but wish that he had said whatever it was he had wanted to say. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notes on Names: 
> 
> Nawanuke (縄抜け): escaping; slipping out of bonds of rope 
> 
> Heiwa (平和): peace, harmony


	20. Chapter 20

“Obito.” 

Obito looked up from his book,  _ The Deserts of Suna _ , fourth and final book of the series he and Kakashi had been reading since they started dating. It had come out just in time for Kakashi’s seventeenth birthday, but Obito had quickly stolen it for himself. “Yeah?” 

Kakashi waved a scroll. “A mission from the Hokage.” 

Obito rolled his eyes. “You can just say from your dad, you know. It’s weird for you to call him the Hokage.” 

He reached out for the scroll, only for Kakashi to hide it behind his back. “Delivery fee,” he said. 

Obito tugged down Kakashi’s mask and kissed him. “There. Now tell me what illustrious mission we’ve been given.” 

Kakashi handed over the scroll. Obito opened it and skimmed through. “A diplomatic mission to the capital? Boring.” 

“Perks of being the Hokage’s son,” Kakashi said. “Think of it as a vacation.” 

“We go on way more interesting vacations all the time,” Obito said. “Like the hot springs!” 

“Unfortunately, we have to stay the whole time for this,” Kakashi said. “But it should be fruitful.” 

Obito laughed. “What a weird way to put it.” He nudged Kakashi with his bare foot. “Hey, sit down.” 

“We should pack,” Kakashi said, even as he sat down next to Obito, putting Obito’s feet in his lap. 

“I’m still packed,” Obito said. “We just got back from a mission, and I’ve been here the whole time.” 

Kakashi shrugged. “I like it more when you’re here. Although, I’m still packed too.” 

“That’s because you’ve been training with Gai instead of unpacking,” Obito said. “Hang on, let me finish the book and then we can go. I only have a few more chapters.” 

He opened the book back up to the battle he’d been in the middle of; Kai was in the middle of trying to rescue Asahi, who had gotten mixed up in bad business to save Kai from the group of rogue ninja who’d been manipulating him in the previous books. 

“Obito.” 

“Hmm?” 

“Do you want to get married?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Obito said, as Kai wrapped a trio of ninja in wire and kicked another off the edge of the plateau. Kai was so damn cool. “I feel like you asked me that before.” 

“I did.” 

Obito wiggled his toes against Kakashi’s thigh. “You finished the third book, right?” 

“I did. I was going to read that one, but someone took it before I could,” Kakashi said. 

Obito grinned at him unrepentantly. “I’m almost done! If he doesn’t rescue Asahi I’m gonna riot in the streets.” 

“Please don’t,” Kakashi said. “I would have to join you, and then that would embarrass the village because my father is Hokage.” 

Obito laughed. “What? Why would you have to join me?” 

“I can’t let my boyfriend riot in the streets alone,” Kakashi said. “Besides. Asahi and Kai should absolutely end up together.” 

“I knew you were just as invested in these books as I am,” Obito said. 

“You should hear Shizune talk about them. She’s even more invested than we are,” Kakashi said. 

Obito shuddered. “Forget Shizune, your creepy little lab buddy is into them.” 

“Anko isn’t creepy,” Kakashi said. 

“She left snakes in my bed! For a month!” 

“Snakes are cute,” Kakashi said. 

“You’re so weird,” Obito said. “Noodles and Rice are cute, not your snakes. You know they’re big enough to eat me?” 

“They aren’t going to eat you.” 

“Manda eats people! Orochimaru threatened to feed me to him!” 

“Well, that’s Manda. My snakes don’t eat people.” 

“So you say,” Obito said playfully. “Now let me read, or we won’t be able to leave until tomorrow morning.”

“Kay.” Kakashi stretched out on top of Obito, resting his head against Obito’s chest. Obito propped his book up on Kakashi’s head and let himself be dragged back into the world of Asahi and Kai. 

It wasn’t yet completely dark by the time he finished the book. With Asahi rescued and reunited with Kai, wandering the world together, he was ready to set off. “Okay, let me make sure I have everything I need, and we can go. Here’s the book.” 

His things were where he had left them in Kakashi’s bedroom, so it was a matter of minutes to double check he had everything he needed before joining Kakashi again. 

The Capital was close enough that they didn’t bother with a portal, instead walking there themselves. At their speeds, they were able to arrive by mid-morning, and were greeted by the crowded streets of tourists and citizens. 

Obito could only be thankful that people tended to give shinobi a wide berth, or else they might have been crushed by the crowds. 

“Busy as ever,” Kakashi sighed. “Well, let’s not keep the daimyo waiting.” 

The palace loomed above the rest of the city, all elegant white walls with gleaming red and gold accents and a black roof to top it all off. A wall separated it from the rest of the city, but Obito and Kakashi were quickly escorted inside after showing their identification and mission scroll. They were led to the throne room, where the daimyo was waiting for them. 

“Hatake-kun,” he greeted. “A pleasure, as always.” 

Kakashi bowed, and Obito copied him. “Daimyo-sama. I have a message from the Hokage.” 

A retainer approached them and accepted a scroll from Kakashi, then brought it to the daimyo. The daimyo read through it, stroking his chin. “I will have to discuss the matter with my advisors. For now, you will be shown to your room. We shall meet again tomorrow.” 

The room they were brought to was more like a series of rooms, with a main room, a bathroom and toilet, and a bedroom. It was on the highest floor of the palace, but had a balcony that overlooked a garden more beautiful than anything Obito had seen in Konoha, with rock gardens and koi ponds and small, man-made waterfalls. And the food was out of this world—thin-sliced beef of the highest grade, fresh fruits and vegetables that were out of season in Konoha, fatty fish that melted in his mouth. 

It almost made up for the boring diplomatic meetings. Obito was thankful that Kakashi was taking charge of those, because everything the daimyo and his many advisors said just went in one ear and out the other for him. 

“Just sit there and look the part of the menacing Uchiha,” was Kakashi’s advice for the meetings. “If someone asks you anything, just grunt derisively, like answering such a pointless question is beneath you.” 

“So act like the most stereotypical Uchiha ever, got it,” Obito said. At least it worked; by the end of the second day they had stopped trying to ask him questions, and by the fourth they shrank away from his stare, even when he was just kind of spacing out in their direction. It was kind of fun being taken seriously for once. 

All in all, their trip to the Capital was a surprisingly fun vacation, at least until Obito was shaken awake in the middle of the night. 

His hand shot to the kunai under his pillow. “Obito, it’s me,” Kakashi said, stopping him before he could follow through on an attack. “Something’s wrong. Someone’s on the roof.” 

“Not one of the guardians?” 

“Possibly. But we should check.” 

Obito slipped out of bed, kunai in hand, and followed Kakashi onto the roof. The civilian guards, patrolling the palace grounds, didn’t so much as look up. They crouched on the roof, side-by-side, and surveyed the area. 

Obito pointed to a figure next to an ugly ornamental statue. It was too dark to see details, but Obito could make out the waistband that all the Twelve Guardians wore. “There, it’s one of the guardians. I’ll ask him what’s up.” 

Kakashi held out a hand, stopping him in his tracks. “Stop. I smell blood.” 

Obito activated his Sharingan and sighed. Where he should have seen the flow of the man’s chakra, he saw nothing. “He’s dead.” 

“I’m going to follow the trail,” Kakashi said, summoning his snakes with a small puff of smoke. 

“I’ll see if I can find any of the other guardians. They travel in packs, right?” 

Kakashi snorted. “That’s one way of putting it. I’ll send a snake if I find anything.” 

Kakashi crept off in one direction, so Obito went the other way, keeping his Sharingan active so he could see any chakra. When he did, it wasn’t one source of chakra, but three. The guardian was on the ground, unconscious, with two unknown shinobi standing over him, several kunai at the ready. Obito put on a burst of speed and arrived just in time to intercept the kunai, knocking aside most of them but taking one to the shoulder. He gritted his teeth and pressed on. The first was taken off guard, and Obito was able to get in close and knock him out without much trouble. The second was more aware, summoning up a thick mist to keep Obito from tracking him with the Sharingan. 

Obito took the opportunity to activate a portal and remove the guardian from the situation, delivering him straight to the dorm all the guardians shared. Only four of them were there, but they woke up as soon as he stepped through the portal and laid the unconscious guardian down on the floor. 

“Trouble on the roof,” he said. “I’m going back up there.” 

The mist on the roof had cleared by the time he stepped back through the portal. The shinobi he had left up on the roof was prowling the area, clearly looking for Obito. He stopped and looked towards the other end of the roof as a shout rang out. Obito took advantage of his distraction and darted forwards, drawing his tanto. It sank deep into the man’s back, and when Obito pulled it out, he fell to the ground and didn’t move. Obito ran on, towards the back of the house, and found Kakashi fighting two shinobi while holding two bundles under his arms. Kakashi kicked one of the shinobi away and blew a ball of fire at them, but then was forced to dodge out of the way of a flurry of shuriken. 

A snake slithered across the ground, heading towards one of the men. Obito bit down on his thumb and slammed his hand to the ground. “Noodles! Rice! Get ‘em!” 

His wolves howled and launched themselves forwards, toppling over the two shinobi. One of them rolled out of the way, and the other attempted to fight his way free but quickly went still. A snake slithered away from his legs. 

Kakashi darted away from the fight, still holding the two bundles—children, Obito realized as he got closer. 

“What’s the situation?” 

“They tried to kidnap the daimyo’s two oldest children,” Kakashi said. “I’m getting them out of here.” 

“Go. I’ll handle this.” Noodles and Rice were still distracting the remaining shinobi, so as Kakashi vanished into the palace, Obito teleported behind him. The man turned around as Obito stepped out of the portal, just in time to take Obito’s tanto to his chest. He clutched at the tanto as he sank to his knees, and fell forward as Obito yanked it out. 

“Good job,” he said, to the two wolves and the snake currently wrapped around his ankle. “You can go now, I think that was all of them.” 

“Will do, boss!” Noodles declared cheerfully before vanishing in a puff of smoke with Rice. Kakashi’s snake remained around Obito’s ankle, so Obito decided to just leave him to it. 

The palace was in an uproar when he made his way back inside. The civilian guards and some of the guardians were searching the floors of the palace, while the remainder had gathered in the throne room with the daimyo and his family. The daimyo’s wife was tearfully clutching her oldest son and daughter, while the two other sons and the youngest daughter were sleepily rubbing their eyes. Four of the guardians were in the room, ready in case of another attack. 

Kakashi was sitting in the middle of the room, so Obito took a seat next to him. “I took care of the last one on the roof,” he said. 

To Obito’s shock, the daimyo bowed his head to them. “You have saved my children.” 

“My babies,” his wife bawled, clutching them even closer. “My beautiful babies!” 

Privately, Obito thought that the kidnappers probably just wanted a ransom; the kids probably would have been fine in the end. 

“For your service, you will both be given a reward,” the daimyo announced. “Whatever you desire, I will grant it so long as it is in my power to do so.” 

There wasn’t anything Obito really wanted; the daimyo was super rich, yeah, but Obito had enough money from his missions. He didn’t really need anything more than what he had. Well, he supposed it would be great if the author wrote another book in the Kai and Asahi series, but he was pretty sure the daimyo couldn’t do anything about that. He would just leave the reward thing to Kakashi; Kakashi would know an appropriate reward to ask for. 

“We want to get married.” 

Obito gaped at Kakashi. Kakashi stared at the daimyo. 

“Oh? To whom?” the daimyo asked. 

“To each other,” Kakashi said. 

“Ah, such a situation would be . . . unprecedented.” The daimyo looked to his advisors for assistance. Obito prayed that one or more of them would object. Then he could ask Kakashi what the hell he was doing. 

None of the advisors, however, spoke up. 

“Uh, Kakashi?” he whispered. “What are you doing?” 

Kakashi glanced at him briefly, and then reached over to lace their fingers together. “Don’t worry. I’ll handle it.” 

That was absolutely not the problem. 

“Kakashi,” he hissed. “We can’t get married! I’m eighteen! You’re seventeen!” 

“Sixteen is the age when people can legally marry,” Kakashi said. “You should know that. That’s when Itachi’s mother got married. Granted, the law currently only pertains to men marrying women. I was planning to petition the daimyo to change the law, but hadn’t expected much progress for a few years. Really, this is a fortuitous turn of events.” 

“Wait, wait, you want to get married? You want to marry  _ me _ ?” One of the advisors was yelling about something, but Obito couldn’t tear his eyes away from Kakashi. 

Kakashi blinked at him. “Of course? You already accepted my proposal.” 

“Wait, I did what?” Obito whispered. 

“I asked you if you wanted to get married, and you said yes,” Kakashi said. 

“What? No—” Obito stopped. He did, actually, recall Kakashi mentioning that. “I thought you meant that theoretically! Like, an ‘in the future would you want this’ type of question! Like, you know, ‘do you want kids’ or ‘do you want to buy a house.’” 

Kakashi hesitated. “Do you want kids and a house?” 

“Uh, yeah—wait, that’s not the point! The point is, I didn’t realize you were actually proposing to me! There’s supposed to be more, you know, proposing. And a ring.” 

Kakashi opened his pocket and pulled out a box, flipping open the cover to reveal two golden rings. 

“Oh. You have rings. Well, uh, that’s good. Wait a minute, how long have you been planning this?” 

Kakashi shrugged. “I don’t know. A few months.” 

“We haven’t even been dating for very long. Only a couple years,” Obito said. 

“But I’ve loved you for longer than that,” Kakashi said. 

Obito’s mouth opened and closed. “Wait—you—you love me?” 

“Of course I do. You’re the only person I’ve ever loved. You’ve been by my side ever since I was rescued and taken to Orochimaru’s lab. I . . . I want you to stay by my side. If you want to. So, will you marry me, Obito?” 

Obito scrubbed at his eyes. “Aw, jeez, Kakashi. I love you too, you know. And maybe we’re kind of young, but . . . I feel the same. There’s nowhere I’d rather be than by your side.” 

Kakashi’s eye, previously tense, softened. Obito smiled at him and leaned in to kiss him. 

“How precious!” 

The two of them jerked apart. The daimyo’s wife had given up her grip on her children, and now had her hands clasped together, tears pouring down her cheeks. “Darling, we can’t possibly get in the way of true love! Marry these two lovely boys right this instant!” 

“Ah—right now?” the daimyo said. “Well, we need a marriage certificate . . .” 

“You! Fetch a marriage certificate!” 

An attendant hurried out of the room. Obito leaned in closer to Kakashi. “Is this really okay?” 

“We don’t have to if you don’t want to,” Kakashi said. “I’ll ask for something else?” 

Obito flushed. “I-I-I want to,” he said. The thought gave him butterflies in his stomach, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea of being married to Kakashi. “But, wait, what about names?” 

“Ah,” Kakashi said. “I guess we could keep our names . . . I can’t really marry into the Uchiha clan, being one of the last Hatake.” 

“Wait,” Obito said. “Kakashi, can I take your name? And marry into the Hatake clan?” 

Kakashi’s eye widened. “Are you sure? The Uchiha won’t be happy.” 

Obito grinned. “They’re never happy with me. I’d rather be a Hatake than an Uchiha.” 

“If that’s what you want, then you’re welcome to have my name,” Kakashi said. “I . . . I would like that too. You being part of the Hatake clan.” 

Obito would never have to step into that stifling compound again. Would never have to return to that empty house, shoved out of the way of the rest of the clan. His cheeks ached with the force of his smile. “I’d love that. I’d need a new place to live.” 

“I’ll make us a place,” Kakashi said. “A place of our own, wherever we want to live.” 

“With the mokuton?” Obito laughed. 

“I was just going to buy something with the money I’ve saved, but I can make it with the mokuton,” Kakashi said. 

“Wait, buy a house? Just how much money do you have saved?” 

Kakashi shrugged. “I never spend much. Besides, I didn’t know how much a wedding would cost.” 

Obito snorted. “What? How long have you been planning this?” 

Kakashi tugged at his mask, and embarrassed flush crossing his cheeks. “Ah . . . a while?” 

“You’re ridiculous,” Obito said fondly. 

The door slid open, and the attendant walked in and presented a form to the daimyo. 

The daimyo cleared his throat. “Very well. Would either of you wish to say anything?” 

“I think we’ve both said enough,” Obito laughed. 

Kakashi nodded. 

“Very well,” the daimyo said. “Fill out the form, if you would.”

Kakashi took the form first and signed his name across the bottom, and Obito did the same. The daimyo finished by signing his name as well, and sealed the matter with his official stamp. “I now pronounce you husband . . . and husband! In addition, your ceremony and reception will all be paid for, whenever you wish to hold it. It is the least I can do in exchange for saving my children’s lives.” 

The rest of the evening passed in a blur; there was an impromptu feast, Obito vaguely recalled, although most of the daimyo’s children fell asleep in the middle of it. Afterwards, he and Kakashi returned to their rooms. 

The moment the door closed behind them, Kakashi pulled Obito into a searing kiss. 

“There,” he said against Obito’s mouth. “We’re married now.” 

Obito laughed breathlessly. “You sure have a way of springing things on a guy, Kakashi.” 

Kakashi shrugged. “It all turned out for the best. I don’t regret it.” 

Obito smiled and leaned his head against Kakashi’s shoulder. “Neither do I.” 

***

Obito stared at Kakashi.

Kakashi stared at Sakumo. 

Sakumo stared at both of them. “The daimyo sent me a very interesting letter,” he said. “Congratulating me on my son’s marriage, and sending me an extravagantly large amount of money for a ceremony and reception.” 

Obito gulped. He knew they’d be getting grilled, but he didn’t think it would be happening the moment they stepped through the gates. Granted, they’d gotten a little . . . distracted . . . on the way home, but the daimyo sure was fast about communicating with the Hokage. 

Sakumo sighed. “I won’t ask you if you were sure, because you never do anything without being sure about it. But the Uchiha elders aren’t happy with the matter.”

“They’re never happy with me,” Obito said. 

“Be that as it may, don’t be surprised if you face some increased hostility. In addition . . . don’t pull anything like this again without informing me first, Kakashi,” Sakumo said. 

Kakashi looked to the side. “I’m not exactly going to get married a second time, Hokage-sama.” 

“Inform me,” Sakumo stressed. “And Obito—” 

Obito gulped and braced himself. 

“Welcome to the family.” 

Obito’s mouth fell open. “You-you aren’t mad at me?” 

“You’ve been like a second son to me ever since you became my apprentice,” Sakumo said with a soft smile. “I’m overjoyed to have you as part of the clan. But please, don’t let Kakashi make any more rash decisions on his own again.” 

“It wasn’t rash,” Kakashi grumbled. “I planned it very carefully. I just took advantage of an opportune moment to speed things up.” 

“Next time someone offers you a reward, please consult me first on what you should ask for,” Sakumo said. “Although, you have made several people the village extremely happy. Don’t be surprised if you see a lot of newlyweds in the coming days.” 

Obito laughed, surprised. “Wait, people are getting married? Because of us?” 

“You do realize the daimyo changed the laws for you,” Sakumo said.

“That’s . . . kinda cool,” Obito admitted. 

“Please don’t do it again,” Sakumo said. “The elders are up in arms over ‘the breaking down of tradition,’ and I have plenty of tradition-breaking to do myself.” 

Kakashi nodded. “We’ll be careful. I’m going to buy land to build a house now.” 

“A house,” Sakumo said. 

“A house,” Kakashi confirmed. “For Obito.” 

Obito couldn’t deny that Kakashi’s words made him happy; someone was willing to go all the way to building a house, just for him, for no other reason than that they loved him. 

Sakumo sighed. “Of course. You’re welcome to both live with me, of course.” 

“I don’t think you’d get enough sleep that way,” Kakashi said. 

“Kakashi!” 

“More than I needed to know,” Sakumo sighed. “Go on, get out of here.” 

Kakashi nodded and turned to go. Obito waved at Sakumo one last time before following him. 

“And boys? Congratulations. Be good to each other.” 

Obito smiled at Kakashi as they left the office. “So, what’s next?” 

Kakashi nodded resolutely. “A house. Do you want a reception? Or a ceremony?” 

“I don’t really care,” Obito admitted. “A reception might be fun, I guess? It’ll be the easiest way to tell everyone we know.” 

“And we can use the gift money to buy furniture,” Kakashi said. 

“Sounds like a plan! ‘Cause, uh, I spent a lot of my money on my old house,” Obito said. “So I don’t have much in the way of savings. I’m . . . I can’t wait to never have to go back there.” 

Kakashi slipped his hand into Obito’s. “Where do you want to live?” 

“I dunno. I guess I never really thought about it,” Obito said. “Is there anything you want?” 

“A training ground,” Kakashi said firmly. 

“Okay, a training ground,” Obito laughed. “I don’t think anyone wants to live near a training ground. We’ll probably have our pick of locations. So, wanna go look?” 

“Let’s go,” Kakashi said. “Hm, I wonder if you can annoy them into giving us a discount?” 

“Rude! I’m not annoying, I’m your husband!” Obito laughed, delighted. “I’m your husband!” 

When he looked over at Kakashi, Obito could tell that even through the mask, he was smiling. 

***

Shadowing Hiruzen had not prepared Sakumo for how much of a headache it was, actually being Hokage. The domestic issues had been bad enough. Getting anything approved by the council was worse than pulling teeth, and the elders or clan heads were constantly bursting into his office to yell at him about something or other. Then there were the Uchiha. Hiruzen had somehow managed to piss them off so thoroughly that Sakumo wasn’t sure that calming them down was even within the realm of possibility anymore. He was trying to mend those bridges, but Danzo and the Uchiha elders weren’t making it easy for him. 

In addition, he’d inherited the small conflict going on between Kumo and Konoha, remnants of the Third Shinobi War, and that had been worse. When the request to meet for a renewed peace treaty had come to his office, he’d been optimistic that he’d be able to wrap things up in time for the new year. He’d put up with Kumo’s Head Ninja and his smug expression, waded his way through outrageous demands until they had something considerably more reasonable--considering that Konoha wasn’t losing the fight by any means, the treaty had better be reasonable in Sakumo’s opinion--only for this to happen. 

_ This  _ being the corpse currently in the middle of his office. 

Hiashi Hyuuga stared Sakumo down unapologetically. Hizashi, ostensibly there as a witness, looked just as unapologetic. 

“Explain,” Sakumo said. “I want to know exactly what happened.” 

“This  _ man _ ,” Hiashi hissed. “Snuck into the Hyuuga compound with the intent of kidnapping my daughter. I caught him in the middle of the act.” 

His copy of the treaty sat on his desk, the ink still fresh. Kumo’s copy had already been sent away--now, Sakumo wished he had held back. 

“Keep talking,” he said, as he pulled out a pen and a fresh slip of paper. “I have to write a letter. And someone seal up that body.” 

Hiashi paced back and forth across the office like a caged tiger as Sakumo wrote his letter to the Raikage, doing his best to keep it short and to the point and not too accusatory, but not too apologetic or permissive. He finished before Hiashi had finished his rant, and handed the letter off to an ANBU to be taken to the Aviary. 

Hiashi paused in the middle of his rant, and Sakumo quickly spoke up before he could begin again. “Go. I’ll summon you again when I receive word from Kumo.” 

It felt like it took forever for the response to arrive, but once it did, Sakumo wished it hadn’t. 

Clearly, Kumo had received their copy of the treaty before sending their response. 

He put off summoning Hiashi Hyuuga as long as he could, trying to work out a way out of the mess they were in and scrapping idea after idea, until Hiashi had clearly gotten tired of waiting and decided to nearly break down his door instead, again accompanied by Hizashi. 

Sakumo held up a hand for silence before Hiashi could begin to speak. Mercifully, Hiashi was silent; being Hokage was good for something, after all. “Kumo denies any involvement in the affair,” he said. Hiashi’s mouth opened, and Sakumo plunged on before he could speak. “Obviously, this is a lie, but it is one they are sticking to. They demand the body of his killer, in accordance to the terms of the treaty.” 

Sakumo had no idea who had suggested that term--Danzo, or one of the other elders, or someone from Kumo--but he already regretted agreeing to it. 

The room was silent. Sakumo waited, wondering what Hiashi would say. 

“I’ll do it.” 

Sakumo’s eyes snapped to Hizashi. Hiashi seemed just as surprised. 

Hizashi looked straight at Sakumo. “They demand the body of his killer. Very well. I will go. Who can say whether it was I, or Hiashi, who killed him? Either way they will not be able to tell the difference.” 

“I will not allow it,” Hiashi said. 

“Your children are young,” Hizashi said. “Without you, who would lead the clan? Hinata? She is three years old. Another member of the main house, until she is of age? Perhaps--until they decide their own children would be better suited for the position, and conflict arises over the succession. A weakened Hyuuga clan is a weakened Konoha.” 

Hizashi closed his eyes for a moment, and then opened them. “Furthermore, you are my brother, and I do this for you. All I ask is that you care for Neji, as if he were your own.” 

Sakumo held up a hand before he could go any further. His office did not need to turn into more of a scene out of a daytime drama than it already had. “Your sacrifice is appreciated, Hizashi, but unnecessary.” 

Hizashi’s eyes widened. “Hokage-sama?” 

“I’m hardly about to roll over for Kumo, for an incident that they started,” Sakumo said. He picked up two letters, already written, and tapped them against the desk. “I have a plan.” 

The first of the letters, he held out for an ANBU to take. “Deliver that to the Aviary. Tell them to send the fastest bird they have--Jiraiya likes to travel quickly. Owl, find Orochimaru and Tsunade and bring them here. Tell them I have a mission for them.” 

The two ANBU vanished. Hiashi and Hizashi were in the middle of a quiet but extremely intense discussion, so Sakumo left them to it. As always, he had plenty of paperwork to finish up while he waited. 

Tsunade announced her presence by slamming the door open. “This had better be good, Sakumo! I had just gotten Nawanuke to go the fuck to sleep when your ANBU went and woke him up!” 

“You can consider yourself lucky that I was not in the middle of anything delicate,” Orochimaru said. 

“I have a mission for you,” Sakumo said. 

“Great. Who are we fighting?” Tsunade asked. 

“Hopefully, no one,” Sakumo said, holding out the letter. “I told you earlier about the incident with the Hyuuga and the Head Ninja of Kumo. I need you to deliver this to the Raikage.” 

Orochimaru stared disdainfully at the letter. Tsunade glowered at him. “A letter. You couldn’t get one of your chuunin to do this?” 

“The letter isn’t important,” Sakumo said. “It’s full of meaningless platitudes. The important thing is who delivers the letter.” 

Tsunade barked out a laugh. “I get it! You’re flexing your muscles at the Raikage. Well, I can’t say I don’t like being shown off. We’ll deliver your letter.” 

“Very well, Tsunade can deliver the letter,” Orochimaru said. “I will return to my laboratory.” 

“Tsunade isn’t delivering the letter. The Sannin are,” Sakumo said. “I’ve already sent word to Jiraiya. He’ll meet you on the road. Meet up with him, and then deliver this letter while being as threateningly non-threatening as possible.” 

Tsunade looked at Orochimaru. “Is it possible to be threateningly non-threatening?” 

“If anyone can make it work, it’s you three,” Sakumo said. “You’re a doctor who can punch through mountains, a scientist who knows more jutsu than anyone, and the biggest pervert in the world. I have faith in you.” 

“That makes one of us,” Tsunade snorted, as she snatched the letter from his hand. “You owe me for this, Sakumo.” 

“Just think of it as a vacation,” Sakumo said. “You love terrorizing people!” 

“I love it more when I can punch them once I’m sick of terrorizing them,” Tsunade said. “But sure. It’ll be fun. C’mon, Orochimaru, let’s go. You love creeping people out.” 

“I do find the expressions on their faces quite stimulating,” Orochimaru mused as he followed her out the door. 

Sakumo spread his hands wide and smiled at Hiashi and Hizashi. “There we have it. Problem solved. Hopefully. Those three should be able to put the fear of Konoha into them.” 

Hiashi and Hizashi exchanged doubtful looks. Sakumo elected to be magnanimous and dismiss them instead of explaining the details of his plan. 

Sakumo knew it for a fact: no one could withstand the sheer force of annoyance that was Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya combined. Not even the Raikage. 


	21. Chapter 21

“You! Obito Uchiha! Stop right there!” 

Obito yelped and froze in place. “Tsunade-sama!” 

Tsunade stepped into his field of vision, hands on her hips. “Do you have a mission? Are you busy?” 

“Uh, no, not really,” Obito said. “Just training.” 

“Great. You’re babysitting,” Tsunade said. 

“I’m a what now?” 

“Babysitting. You know, that thing genin do for D-ranks? Nawanuke’s sick so I’m taking him to the hospital, but I need someone to watch Heiwa,” Tsunade said, nodding towards Nawanuke, who was kicking pebbles at genin with the glee of someone who knew none of them could retaliate against a civilian kid. Unfortunately, “he was an annoying little shit,” was not a good enough excuse to get out of trouble. Obito had tried. 

Heiwa, thankfully, was much less annoying. Granted, Obito had never really spent time with her, but she couldn’t possibly be as bad as Nawanuke, who had once put gum in Obito’s hair and laughed about it. And dropped a water balloon on Obito’s head. And tied all of Obito’s ninja wire into a knot. He was a cute kid, but then he started screaming and wreaking havoc the moment you so much as looked at him. 

He didn’t seem sick, at first, until he projectile vomited onto a genin. Obito was pretty sure that had been intentional, and judging by Tsunade’s stressed sigh, she knew it too. 

“Obito. Senju compound. Now.” 

Obito jumped. “Yes! I’m going, I’m going.” 

He knew the way to the Senju compound, of course. He’d been there a few times before for various parties, although not since Kogane’s birthday the previous March. Usually there was a kind of grumpy old guy guarding the gate, one who always glared at Obito when he walked in, but today he wasn’t there. Obito didn’t actually meet anyone as he walked to the main house, which was unusual. There weren’t nearly as many Senju as there were Uchiha, but he was pretty sure there were usually at least a few people around. 

Tsunade had left the door unlocked, so he let himself in and helped himself to a pair of slippers. “It’s Obito,” he called into the house. “Heiwa-chan, where are you?” 

“Right here.” 

Obito jumped and spun around to see Heiwa sitting on a couch, a stuffed rabbit at her side. She rubbed at her eyes sleepily. “Oh, sorry, where you sleeping? Your mom asked me to come hang out with you. Do you remember me?” 

Heiwa nodded. “You’re Nii-chan’s friend’s husband. Mom said you’re an idiot. But Nii-chan said you’re a good ninja.” 

“Kogane said that, huh? You like ninja, right, Heiwa?” 

“I like ninja. I’m going to be Hokage,” Heiwa said. She glared at Obito as if daring him to laugh. 

“That’s an awesome dream,” Obito said. “You’re gonna be a great Hokage.” 

Heiwa blushed and looked away, clearly pleased with what he had said. 

“You wanna practice being a ninja with me?” Obito asked. He didn’t mind sitting around while Heiwa slept or did whatever, but it would be more fun to actually do something. 

After a moment, Heiwa nodded. “I’m the Hokage. And you can be the jounin commander.” 

“How prestigious!” Obito laughed. “A rank I’m never gonna get in real life. I’ll gladly be your jounin commander, Hokage-sama.” 

“Okay. Wait here.” 

Heiwa trotted off and vanished up the stairs. She was, what, almost four? A little older than Naruto was; Naruto had turned three only the October before. Obito found it hard to believe that it had already been three years since Minato and Kushina had died; it still hurt to think about. Every time he thought about how Naruto would grow up like he had, not knowing his parents, it brought up a fresh wave of sadness. Sure, Naruto had his uncle and the rest of the Uzumaki clan, but Obito knew better than anyone that one close relative and a big clan didn’t mean you didn’t miss your parents. Once Naruto was in Konoha and attending the Academy, Obito was going to tell him everything he knew about Kushina and Minato. 

The patter of small feet on the wood floor alerted him to Heiwa’s return. She was carrying a tiny little pouch, and had a piece of black fabric with a piece of paper attached to it wrapped around her forehead. As she got closer, Obito could see that she’d drawn the village symbol on the paper. 

“Whatcha got there?” he asked. 

Heiwa opened up the pouch to reveal a few rubber shuriken and kunai. Obito whistled. “Wow, you’re super prepared!” 

“I wanted ninja wire, but Mom said no,” Heiwa said. 

“Weeeellll,” Obito said. “If you promise not to tell, I’ll lend you my ninja wire today. But it’s our secret, okay?” 

Heiwa nodded, her expression serious. “I’ll make it a village secret. Because I’m the Hokage.” 

Obito grinned. “Of course, Hokage-sama! So, what’s our first order of business?” 

Heiwa led the way to the back garden. “You’re my jounin commander, but you’re a traitor to the village, so I have to stop you.” 

Obito nodded and fell into a defensive stance. “You’ll never stop me, Hokage-sama!” 

Heiwa pulled out her kunai and gave him a menacing glare so reminiscent of Tsunade that Obito shivered. “Prepare yourself.” 

By the time the door to the backyard opened hours later, Obito was wrapped up in ninja wire and covered with bruises from Heiwa’s kunai and shuriken. 

“What are you doing?” 

Obito tilted his head backwards and grinned at Kakashi. “Hey! We’re playing ninja. Wanna join? Heiwa’s the Hokage. I’m a traitor.” 

Kakashi looked down at him with a stony expression. 

“C’moooon,” Obito cajoled. “It’ll be fun. I’ll make it worth your while.” 

“Oh, no,” Kakashi said in a monotone. “The Hokage has captured my comrade. Whatever shall I do?” 

Heiwa aimed a kunai at him. “I’ll defeat you Kumo ninja! You’ll never attack Konoha again!” 

“Mwahahaha,” Kakashi said. “You’ll never defeat me. And then I will go to Konoha and kidnap all the clan children. Because that’s what we do.” 

“Kakashi!” Obito hissed. “Are we allowed to talk about that?” 

Kakashi shrugged. “What? She’s three. Who’s she going to tell?” 

“Don’t un—unrestimate me!” Heiwa declared. 

“Oh, if only you had the Legendary Sannin with you,” Kakashi said. “Then I would run away with my tail between my legs. Because that’s what Kumo ninja do.” 

Obito laughed. “Kakashi!” 

“That’s basically what happened,” Kakashi said. 

“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure we’re not supposed to talk about it.” 

“What aren’t you supposed to talk about?” Heiwa asked. 

“It’s nothing,” Obito said quickly, but Heiwa was already speaking again. 

“Is it about how Hinata was kidnapped? Because Mom told me about that already. She said that if someone tries to kidnap me, I should scream and fight him. She gave me a real kunai to keep near me at night so I can stab anyone who tries to kidnap me,” Heiwa said. “But Kogane said that wouldn’t help because if someone kidnapped me they would probably be really strong.” 

“Jeez, Kogane,” Obito said. 

Kakashi shrugged. “Well, it’s true.” 

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you should say it!” 

A rubber kunai flew threw the air and struck Kakashi in the thigh. “No being distracted during battle!” Heiwa declared. 

Kakashi put his hands in the air. “There’s an important message for the Hokage. Dinner is ready.” 

Heiwa sulked. “You get away this time.” 

Obito escaped from the ninja wire as Heiwa went in search of dinner. “Thanks for that. My arms were falling asleep.” 

“So you could have escaped at any time,” Kakashi said. 

“Yeah, but what’s the fun in that?” Obito said. “Lighten up, Kakashi! Maybe you should spend more time with kids. They’re pretty fun.” 

Heiwa opened the back door. “Kakashi-nii, Obito-nii, Ba-san wants to know if you’re staying for dinner.” 

“We can have dinner? Awesome! Sure, we’ll stay, Heiwa.” 

A small, happy smile spread across her face. “Mm. That means three people for dinner. I’ll go tell Ba-san.” 

Obito chuckled as she ran off, rubber kunai still in hand. “She’s a cute kid.” 

“You’re good with kids,” Kakashi commented. 

Obito walked into the house, Kakashi trailing behind him. “I guess? I mean, there are a ton of Uchiha kids. I’m just used to spending time with them.” 

Kakashi nodded thoughtfully and followed Obito into the dining room, where Heiwa was patiently waiting as Tsunade’s housekeeper served the food. 

“Kakashi-nii, sit next to me,” Heiwa said. “You said you would tell me about making jutsu.” 

“Did I?” Kakashi wondered, but obliged her by sitting next to her. 

The housekeeper hadn’t yet finished serving the last plate when there was a knock on the door. Obito waved her off and took up the serving utensils himself. “It’s okay, I got this.” 

She hurried off to answer the door. Obito heard a few brief murmurs of conversation, and then she returned, followed by Rin. 

Obito grinned and waved at her. “Hey, Rin! Hungry?” 

Rin took a seat at the table next to him, across from Heiwa. “Thanks, that would be great. I just got off from my shift.” 

“Oh,” Heiwa said, looking up from her dinner. “Nii-chan’s girlfriend.” 

“Eh?” Obito said, dropping the serving utensils in his shock. “Girlfriend? Since when?” 

Rin blushed. “Ah, not very long. Only a few weeks?” 

“A few weeks? That’s forever!” Obito exclaimed. “And you didn’t tell me? Man, I can’t believe you two are dating . . .” 

He stared into the distance, only coming to his senses when he realized Kakashi had said something. “Yeah?” 

Kakashi only nodded and looked back at his food. When he didn’t say anything else, Obito dismissed it and looked back at Rin. “Man, I can’t imagine Kogane dating at all.” 

Rin giggled. “It’s been . . . interesting. I told him my hands were cold, and he bought me gloves and told me I should dress warmer because of the weather.” 

Obito clasped his hands over his heart. “A true romantic!” 

She smiled down at her dinner. “But he’s very sweet, in his own way. I just have to be very straightforward with him.” 

“You probably sound like the bossiest girlfriend ever,” Obito laughed. “‘Kogane! Hold my hand! Kogane! Put your arm around my waist!’” 

“Why do you want me to do that?” 

“Nii-chan!” Heiwa exclaimed, eyes wide. 

Kogane walked over to Obito and took Obito’s hand in his. “Like this?” 

Obito patted him on the shoulder. “Thanks, Kogane. You’re a real pal. Now go give Rin a hug or whatever it is you do.” 

“Usually I kiss her. Because we are dating, and that is what people do when they are dating,” Kogane said. 

“Uh, I don’t really need to see my best friends making out,” Obito said. “How about you save it for after dinner.” 

Kogane nodded and took a seat at the head of the table, between Rin and Heiwa. “That is acceptable.” 

Heiwa smiled down at her dinner. “Now we only need Dad and Mom.” 

“And Nawanuke,” Kogane said. 

Heiwa frowned. “Nawanuke can stay away. He threw up on Hatake-san.” 

“On . . . Hatake-san?” Obito wondered. 

“Her stuffed wolf. It was a gift from the Godaime,” Kogane said. 

“He’s not a wolf, he’s my advisor,” Heiwa said. “Uchiha-san and Hyuuga-san too.” 

“Her stuffed rabbit and turtle,” Kogane said. 

“My advisors,” Heiwa repeated. “‘Cause I’m the Hokage.” 

“You are not,” Kogane said. 

“Okay!” Obito interrupted. “Let’s eat, before it gets cold!” 

“Wow, you ate all your vegetables, Heiwa!” Rin praised. 

Heiwa nodded. “Mom says vegetables are good for you. Nawanuke never eats his vegetables.” 

“That reminds me,” Rin said. “Your mom is going to be at the hospital with Nawanuke for a little longer. But don’t worry, he’s okay.” 

“I hope he stays there forever,” Heiwa said. 

“Let’s not wish horrible illness on our siblings,” Obito said. “It’s not very nice.” 

Kogane nodded. “Wishing illness is not a practical method of revenge. You should instead—” 

“Eat your fish, Kogane,” Rin said smoothly. Obito shot her a thumbs-up on the sly. 

Kakashi stood abruptly. “I have to go.” 

“Eh?” Obito twisted around to watch him leave. “So soon?”

“Lab work,” Kakashi said. 

“Oh, okay,” Obito said. “See you at home!”

Heiwa watched him go, her mouth twisted into a small frown. Without a word, she started to pick at her dinner. 

“You wanna play together some more after dinner, Heiwa?” Obito offered. “I can’t teach you about making jutsu, but I can teach you some other cool stuff.” 

She looked up at him with wide eyes. “Really?” 

“Really,” Obito said. Heiwa returned to her dinner, smile back on her face. 

Now Obito just had to think of some skill appropriate for an almost-four-year-old. Tsunade wouldn’t kill him if he taught Heiwa the Great Fireball Jutsu . . . right? 

***

“Shishou, I need your help!” 

Orochimaru didn’t look up from the computer—a massive, clunky piece of equipment that they had recently received from another branch of the Research and Development Department—as Kakashi entered the lab. “Is this to do with the jutsu you are developing for the Uchiha boy?” 

“No, not that,” Kakashi said. “Obito wants kids. I asked him, just now, if he wanted kids, and he said yes.” 

Orochimaru’s fingers clacked over the keyboard. “And how is that my problem?” 

“I can’t have kids with Obito. We’re both men,” Kakashi said. 

“Ah, the limits of the human form. So, you require a female vessel,” Orochimaru said. 

“I’d rather not,” Kakashi said. “Can’t you just . . . make one?” 

Orochimaru spun around in his chair, facing Kakashi. “Hmm . . . two people combine to make another . . . their blood lives on in the child, a form of immortality in itself . . . very well. I am intrigued. I will assist you in this endeavor. I will require samples of genetic material from both yourself and the Uchiha boy.” 

“I can do that,” Kakashi said. 

Genetic material was easy enough to find; now that he and Obito lived together, it was a simple matter for Kakashi to find some hair and bring it back to the lab. Kakashi was more involved on the jutsu research side of things, whereas Orochimaru was deeply interested in biological matters and fuinjutsu research as well, so he let Orochimaru handle the brunt of the work. 

In the end, it took two weeks to design and assemble the apparatus: something that resembled a large test tube, covered in a variety of seals, hooked up to Orochimaru’s computer by a mound of wires. 

“It is an inelegant machine,” was Orochimaru’s verdict. “But it is convenient.”

He took his seat at the computer. “I must process the samples. Ask the Uchiha if he has any preferences.” 

Assuming Orochimaru meant preferences as to whether it was a boy or a girl, Kakashi left him to his work and went to hunt down Obito. He eventually found Obito in the middle of a spar with Kogane, while Rin waited for her turn from the sidelines. As Kakashi approached, Obito flashed him a brief grin. “Hey, Kakashi! Want to take a turn after Rin?” 

“No, I have to get back to the lab. I just had a question for you.” 

Obito dodged a strike from Kogane. “Yeah?” 

“Do you prefer girls or boys?” 

“Uh—” Obito dropped down and attempted to sweep Kogane’s legs out from under him, only for Kogane to backflip out of the way. “—both are good?” 

Kakashi nodded; he’d thought the same, but it was nice to know that Obito didn’t have a preference either. “I agree.” 

Kogane’s fist slammed into Obito’s gut, sending him flying backwards into a tree. “I’ll leave you to your fight,” Kakashi said. 

“See you! Love you!” 

“I love you too,” Kakashi called. 

Upon returning to the lab, Kakashi found that several more seals had been added to the tube, along with more wires leading to a variety of instruments, some of which he didn’t even know the purpose of. 

“Obito says he doesn’t have a preference,” he reported. 

“Then I will do as I please,” Orochimaru said. “Now, we must create the artificial gametes, to learn if this venture will even succeed. You will assist me.” 

Kakashi assisted Orochimaru for a couple weeks, until the middle of February, his work only interrupted by one birthday party for Obito—a rousing success, as Obito loved the new fire jutsu Kakashi had created for him—and another birthday party for Heiwa—less of a success, as it had ended in Kakashi and his friends being scolded by Sakumo.

He decided against informing Obito of how the experiments had been going, to avoid getting his hopes up in the case that they ultimately failed. After those weeks however, Kakashi was as clueless as Obito, as they were sent out of the village on a mission to track down an A-rank missing nin who had been spotted getting worryingly close to Konoha. She proved unexpectedly wily, and in the end it took them two weeks to finish the job and haul her back to T&I. 

When they returned at last to Konoha, it was to the discovery that Tsunade had taken Heiwa and Nawanuke to Uzushio for some reason, and no one knew quite when they intended to return, and that Orochimaru had made significant headway in their experiments. 

Kakashi stared at the small blob in the tube. It hardly qualified as a baby, in his mind, but it was larger than he had expected. “How far developed is it?” 

“Approximately twenty-seven days,” Orochimaru said. 

“Twenty-seven? But I was only gone—” 

“For fifteen, yes, yes,” Orochimaru said dismissively. “I have seals to speed up the development. I don’t have time to wait around for experiments to fail. The first batch refused to last until the second day. I spliced in some additional genetic material, and that seems to have stabilized them.” 

“Genetic material? Whose?” 

“Mine,” Orochimaru said.

Kakashi tried to figure out how he felt about Orochimaru’s genetic material being part of his kid. 

“Don’t waste your time on inconsequential thoughts,” Orochimaru said. “It won’t have much of an effect. Think of it as glue. Now, this one has made it to twenty-seven days, the furthest thus far, but I expect it to fail soon. The process has yet to be fully refined. I anticipate several more trials will be required.” 

“Ah. And something Kabuto said. Do you wish for it to be . . . a surprise?” Orochimaru said, as if the mere thought of a surprise was distasteful to him. 

“I’ll ask Obito,” Kakashi decided. 

Obito had already gone to bed; not that Kakashi could blame him. It was still early in the afternoon, but Obito had opened quite a few of those portals, and that tended to exhaust him. “Obito,” Kakashi whispered, nudging him until Obito’s eyes opened. 

“Kakashi? Wha?” Obito mumbled. “Wha’s wrong?” 

“Nothing. Do you want it to be a surprise?” Kakashi asked. 

“Sure, I love surprises. Night, Kakashi.” 

With that, Obito rolled over and fell back asleep. Kakashi patted his spiky hair. “Good night, Obito.” 

Kakashi, however, still wasn’t tired, so he returned to the laboratory to join Orochimaru. Anko was there as well, reading a magazine in the front room while snacking on dango, and Kabuto was inside the lab flipping through one of the many pamphlets of data Orochimaru had collected on their experiment. 

“Obito said he wants it to be a surprise,” Kakashi reported. “Ah . . . perhaps it should be a surprise for me as well.” 

“Very well. You are removed from the project,” Orochimaru said. “Kabuto is more useful in biological fields than you. I have a jutsu that needs to be finished and tested. Work on that. If you finish, find Anko something to do, preferably something hard and frustrating. She has been slacking off far too much since joining T&I.” 

From then on, Kakashi didn’t have much to do with the experiments. Kabuto partitioned off that area of the lab, so the most Kakashi got was a glimpse of the test tube and whatever was growing in it whenever Kabuto opened and closed the curtains. When he was in the village, he busied himself with developing jutsu and testing jutsu that Orochimaru developed, and tormenting Anko on Orochimaru’s behalf. Most of the time, however, he was on missions either with Obito or alone. 

He was off to a diplomatic mission in the Capital on his own—Obito had been sent out on a tracking mission with an Inuzuka and a Hyuuga, so neither of them were particularly happy with their missions—when Orochimaru stopped him on his way out of the lab. 

“I have refined the procedure sufficiently. This one should be the last trial,” Orochimaru said. “You may inform me whenever you are prepared for the final product.” 

***

“Anko.” 

Anko quickly shoved her magazine under the desk, hoping that Orochimaru hadn’t noticed she hadn’t been reading the book on poisons like he’d told her to. It wasn’t her fault the tome was so long and boring. She wanted to do something, not spend all day reading. 

“I will return in the evening,” Orochimaru said, and she quickly started to pay attention to what he had been saying. “I expect the specimen to be disposed of by then.” 

“Right, dispose of the specimen, got it,” Anko said. 

The door shut behind him. Anko waited five minutes, and then pulled out her magazine. It wasn’t like some lab specimen were going anywhere; she’d clean them up when her snakes warned her Orochimaru was returning. In the meantime, she had a gossip rag to read and dango to eat. 

Thirty-four sticks of dango later, Anko was jolted to attention by sharp fangs in her wrist. “Ouch! What was that for?” she demanded, glaring down at the snake. 

“You weren’t listening,” the snake hissed. “Orochimaru and Kabuto return.” 

“Shit.” Anko shoved the dango in the trash along with the gossip mag. Hopefully Orochimaru and Kabuto wouldn’t look in there and realize what she’d been up to. She didn’t have time to take more than a step towards the lab before the front door opened and Orochimaru and Kabuto walked through the door. 

Orochimaru arched an eyebrow at her. “In a hurry, Anko?” 

“Uh, nope,” Anko said. “So. . .you guys are back, huh? How about you go run and get dinner. And I’ll, uh, set the table.” 

Orochimaru stared her down, unimpressed. Kabuto gave her a superior smirk. Anko ground her teeth. Little brat. Just because he was Orochimaru’s favorite now didn’t mean anything—Anko had been his student first! 

Kabuto opened his mouth, probably to make some smarmy response about staying to help Anko clean the lab because obviously she couldn’t do it herself, when a crash came from further inside. In a flash, Orochimaru was in the lab, the doors swinging in his wake. Anko and Kabuto exchanged a look before rushing after him. Anko froze in the doorway at what she saw. 

A kid, a little one about the same size as Tsunade’s brats, stood in the lab, tangled in the curtains Kabuto had set up around whatever he and Orochimaru had been working on. He stared at them with wide, black eyes, a stark contrast to the white hair on his head. Anko had no idea where he had come from, and desperately hoped that Orochimaru wasn’t about to scold her for letting some kid slip into the lab while she was distracted. There was nothing worse than being scolded by Orochimaru; he was more inventive with his punishments than T&I. 

“Anko,” Orochimaru said, “I believe I instructed you to dispose of the specimen.” 

“That’s the specimen?” Anko exclaimed. “He’s a kid!” 

“‘He’ is one of the failed trials,” Orochimaru said. 

Anko eyed the kid warily; when Orochimaru’s trials failed, things tended to go horribly wrong. “What’s wrong with him?” 

“His chakra reserves are much too small,” Orochimaru said. 

Anko relaxed. That wasn’t so bad. 

“Also, he may die of cancer at a tragically young age,” Orochimaru said, which was worse. “No matter. I will dispose of him now.” 

Kabuto stepped in front of Orochimaru, hands on his hips. “You will do no such thing.” 

“I will not,” Orochimaru repeated, almost shocked. 

“You will not,” Kabuto said. “Look at him! He’s awake, exploring his environment. He’s not an empty shell anymore, he’s a child. We have to give him to Kakashi.” 

“Currently impossible,” Orochimaru said. “Kakashi is in the Capital for another fourteen days.” 

“Then, Obito,” Kabuto said. 

“Also impossible. The Uchiha is on a mission, and is not due to return for another twelve days.” 

“Okay,” Kabuto said, “then we’ll take care of him.” 

“We will not.” 

“We will,” Kabuto insisted. 

Eventually, Orochimaru turned away and went to his computer. “Do as you wish. He is your responsibility.” 

“Thank you, Shishou!” Kabuto said. “Now, do you know what they were intending to call him?” 

“I do not know, nor do I care,” Orochimaru said. 

“That’s okay. We’ll just call him Hatake-chan,” Kabuto said. He crouched in front of the boy, who stared at him without blinking. “Hello, Hatake-chan. My name is Kabuto, and that is Anko, and that is Orochimaru.” 

The boy said nothing. “Is he broken?” Anko asked. “You said he was a failed test, right?” 

“Anko, you shouldn’t say things like that. It isn’t nice,” Kabuto said. “Hatake-chan is more than welcome to take his time in speaking to us. Now, let’s find you something to wear that isn’t curtains, and then I’ll show you around the lab.” 

Anko had to admit it, Kabuto was good with kids. She wouldn’t know what to do with one, but he dressed the kid up in a spare change of clothes and led him around the lab, explaining each and every piece of equipment in the lab. When the kid fell asleep, Kabuto tucked him into the exam bed and raced off, returning in record time with real food, clothes, and even a bunch of books. 

“You went a little wild there,” Anko noted. 

“He will be in our care for twelve days. We should ensure that he is as well-taken care of as possible,” Kabuto said. 

Anko perched on a table and watched Kabuto prepare some kind of canned soup for the kid. “Whatever. Just don’t expect me to play babysitter with you.” 

Kabuto smiled at her. “Anko, I wouldn’t trust you to babysit if I were handing out D-ranks and you were the last genin team in the world.” 

“Whatever,” Anko snorted. “Just don’t come crying to me when you’re in over your head. I’ve seen Tsunade’s brat—you’re gonna regret taking care of him by this time tomorrow, maybe sooner. We’ll see how much he screams.” 

To her consternation, the kid proceeded to not scream or cry at all. Even the better behaved part of Tsunade’s brats cried sometimes, like at that boring birthday party Anko had gotten dragged to. Five days passed, and not a peep out of him, no matter how much Kabuto read to him and spoke to him. 

“I think he’s stupid,” Anko said, when Orochimaru had taken the kid away for a checkup and she and Kabuto were eating lunch out in the main room. 

“Don’t say that,” Kabuto said. “He might hear you.” 

“You think it’s weird too, that he hasn’t said anything,” Anko said. 

“Physically, he is almost four years old. Three years and six months, to be exact.” Kabuto said. “It is a little strange that he hasn’t even tried to say anything. However, there is no telling what spending the first forty-two or so months of his life in a test tube did to his development. He wasn’t supposed to be a successful test.” 

“So he’s a baby in the body of a three-year-old,” Anko surmised. “Tough shit.” 

Kabuto shrugged. “So it seems. Of course, it hasn’t been very long. Time will tell.” 

***

In only five days, Orochimaru’s laboratory had become some horrible parody of a preschool. Children’s books, food, and clothes now occupied a small corner of the lab that had previously been devoted purely to his collection of graduated containers in various shapes and sizes. Rather than equipment and wires, he was now in danger of tripping over a small human body. This would not be so bad, Orochimaru thought, if the child showed any hint of promise. Instead, it was utterly silent, staring at the world but making no attempt to engage it. Kabuto had attempted to rouse a response of some sort from the child, and had once managed to make it giggle by tickling it, but had otherwise failed in his attempts. It did not misbehave or cry or complain. It walked around, but that was the extent of what it did, rather like a mobile doll. 

Orochimaru was just waiting for Kabuto to leave the child unattended for long enough that Orochimaru could dispose of it in peace. He was not going to tolerate a failed experiment being deemed a success. 

His chance finally came when Kabuto was forced to take a shift at the hospital, something he had been putting off, at the same time Anko had a shift at T&I. They would not return until the following morning, leaving Orochimaru plenty of time to finish his last report on Test Subject Gamma 12, or 'Hatake-chan' as Kabuto had dubbed the child, and then dispose of it. 

A tug on his sleeve interrupted him just as he was about to finish his report. "Mama." 

Orochimaru turned and stared down at the child. The child stared up at him. "Orochimaru," Orochimaru corrected. 

"Mama," the child said again. 

Well, he had one syllable correct, which was better than none. "What is it you require?" Orochimaru asked. 

The child held up a book, one of the things Kabuto had brought for him. "You wish to be read to," Orochimaru surmised. "Very well. I shall read to you, and you shall eat your dinner and go to bed." 

The child looked at him silently. Orochimaru nodded. "Leaving room for negotiation is a wise choice. Let us commence the reading." 

There were no other chairs in the room, unfortunately, so Orochimaru decided the most efficient method was to simply have the child sit in Orochimaru's lap. That way, it could read along, and would be able to learn to read to itself. 

Orochimaru opened to the first page. "The cat says meow." He looked to the second page. "The dog says woof. This is the drivel Kabuto has been reading to you? No wonder you have not been properly engaging with your environment." 

Orochimaru set the book aside and pulled forwards a book he had given Anko to read as a punishment. Not that she had read it, he knew, or she would have reached the far more interesting sections later in the book. "A treatise on poisons and their side effects," Orochimaru read from the title page. "It is not particularly in-depth, but an overview will be sufficient for you until you decide that poisons are something you are interested in. Now, pay attention, as this will be applicable to your future career as a ninja." 

The child was a far better student of the written word than Anko, listening diligently as Orochimaru read the sections that he deemed most valuable for a growing mind. Orochimaru rewarded him by teaching him to use the microwave, so that he might heat up his dinner by himself. With both mind and body nourished, the child dropped off to sleep almost immediately, and did not wake up until the following morning, when Kabuto returned to the lab. 

Orochimaru observed them covertly throughout the day. The child did not attempt to speak to Kabuto, although he listened, nor did he attempt to initiate contact, although he accepted it. Mostly, he watched, observing Kabuto and Anko and Orochimaru in silence. 

Kabuto left again at the end of the day, clearly reassured by the child's continued presence that Orochimaru had decided not to dispose of him. Not long after Kabuto had left, the child once again approached Orochimaru and tugged on his sleeve. 

“Mama,” he called, when Orochimaru didn’t look at him at once. 

“Patience is a necessary trait for a shinobi,” Orochimaru informed him. “You will wait until I have finished this report for the Hokage.” 

The child fell silent, but didn’t move from Orochimaru’s side. When he had finally finished the report and set it aside to be delivered in the morning, Orochimaru turned to look at him. “As a reward for waiting, I am going to teach you a necessary skill for your career as a shinobi.” 

He led the way across the room, pushing aside equipment so that there was a patch of bare wall. “Your fathers will tell you that you do not have to become a shinobi. That you may choose whatever you wish to do with your life. This would be a waste of talent, if you have any. That is what we shall ascertain. To begin, you must know what chakra is.” 

“Essentially, chakra can be manipulated to create shinobi techniques, which are called jutsu. Like so.” With a single hand seal, Orochimaru created a ball of fire, hovering in the air between them. The Fox Fire Jutsu, an early creation of Kakashi’s, pretty but mostly useless. The child’s deep, black eyes reflected the light of the flames. “There are a variety of techniques, with a variety of uses. If you continue to do as I instruct, I will show you more of them. But now you see the importance of chakra.” 

“Chakra is created by combining physical energy and spiritual energy. Training can increase the amount of chakra a person has at any given time, but there are limits to how much it can increase. Your father, Kakashi Hatake, has an average amount of chakra. You have a slightly below average amount of chakra. Large amounts of chakra are not necessary to be a skilled ninja, however. What you require is rather good chakra control, and that is what we shall test. Observe.” 

Orochimaru walked up the wall to the ceiling, so that he was looking at the child upside-down. “Channel chakra to your feet, then walk up the wall. The chakra will enable you to stick to the wall. However, this is likely too advanced for you at this moment.” 

He stepped down again, grasping the child’s arm and stretching it out. His skin was paper-white, untouched by the sun, and Orochimaru could clearly see his veins. “You see here the veins through which your blood flows. Like blood, chakra flows through your body. First, you must know how to channel chakra. We will start with meditation. Sit like this—yes, just so. Now, form a seal with your hands—yes, like that. Seals are a tool used to help you channel your chakra. Now, we shall begin.” 

Orochimaru talked the child through meditation until he fell asleep. He put the child to bed, more to avoid Kabuto’s ire in the morning than out of any real feeling that the child should be in a bed, and resumed his work until his level of exhaustion diminished his efficiency to unacceptable levels. 

The next day, Kabuto returned to spend time with the child, and at night the child again came to Orochimaru’s side. This time, rather than call out, he waited quietly. 

“Good,” Orochimaru said, once he had finished with his work. “You remembered what I told you. That will serve you well. I believe we have made sufficient progress with the meditation. You can channel your chakra, correct?” 

The boy nodded. “Yeah, Mama.” 

“Yes, Orochimaru,” Orochimaru corrected. The child had clearly been picking up too many of Anko’s speech patterns. “You will now walk up the wall. When you succeed, you will have a reward.” 

The child nodded, put a foot on the wall, attempted to put another foot on the wall, and fell over. 

“A running start may help,” Orochimaru said, and left him to it. The good thing about chakra exercises was that once you explained them, you could leave the students to it. Orochimaru had done much the same with his former genin, who had been a rather uninspired lot. They had taken a full day to learn the technique; Anko had managed it within two hours. Orochimaru set a timer, and waited for the child to either tire or successfully complete his task. 

Two hours in, the child fell to the ground and, instead of going up the wall, walked over to Orochimaru, holding his stomach. “Mama, ouch.” 

“Your stomach hurts?” The child nodded. “Then say, ‘Orochimaru, my stomach hurts.’ Your previous language was imprecise. When giving a mission report, would you say there are a few enemy ninja, or four enemy ninja? The latter, because ‘a few’ could mean anywhere from three to five ninja.” 

“Mama, my stomach hurts,” the child said. 

Orochimaru decided that was good enough. They could work on the child’s constant mispronunciation of his name later. “You are most likely hungry. Alternatively, you have developed a tumor, and will probably die. We shall act on the first hypothesis.” 

After a few tentative sips of his microwave soup, the child devoured it, and was soon back to running at the wall and sticking about half the time. An hour after that, he fell asleep there on the floor. Orochimaru put him on the bed, and returned to his work once again. The next two nights, they did the same, two hours of training, then dinner, then another hour of training, then sleep. 

The fourth night, Orochimaru was in the middle of writing a scathing retort to a proposal by another member of the R&D Department when he was interrupted by an excited shout. “Mama, look!” 

Orochimaru spun around in his chair. His eyes traced up the wall, now dotted with occasional dents, up to the ceiling. “Good. But can you get down?” 

His steps back down were wobbly, slow, and hesitant, but he managed the feat just the same. Orochimaru stopped his timer. “Eleven hours. On the better side of average.” 

“What’s the reward?” the child asked. 

Orochimaru eyed him, examining the clothing Kabuto had given him with distaste. The shirt had some kind of hideous creature on it, likely from a children’s cartoon, and the shorts were, of all things, bright green. “You are going to be a shinobi, and you should dress like it. Those things you are wearing would do absolutely nothing to protect you on the battlefield. Worse, they are hideous. You will receive your reward tomorrow.” 

“Wanna reward now,” the child said. 

“‘I want a reward now,’” Orochimaru corrected. “And what have I said about patience? Patience is necessary if you want to avoid rushing into a trap and meeting an untimely death. I could give you a box, in shiny paper, with a nice bow. And you could rip it open, and find a lovely venomous snake inside that would kill you in a heartbeat. Or you could wait.” 

The child was quiet. Orochimaru nodded. “As I thought. Now, you can entertain yourself, or I can read you this dreadful proposal and you can assist me in informing the writer that a baby monkey would do better at his job.” 

“Monkey!” the child exclaimed. “Ook ook!” 

“I see Kabuto has persisted in reading you that garbage,” Orochimaru said. “I shall show you another example of what not to read.” 

And thus, the tenth day passed peacefully. On the eleventh day, Kabuto and Anko were both gone at their other jobs for the day, and so Orochimaru was again alone with the child. He left the lab briefly to fetch the reward, and returned just as the child had finished his breakfast. 

“Put this on,” he instructed. 

The child looked at the clothes, and then at Orochimaru. “Help please, Mama.” 

“You must learn to dress yourself,” Orochimaru said. “However, as this is different from the clothing you are accustomed to, I will assist you.” 

He had purchased more traditional shinobi clothing for the boy, a kimono top, simple black pants, and practical sandals. “There,” he said. “Now you look the part of a shinobi-in-training.” 

The child jumped up and down, eagerly flapping the sleeves through the air. Orochimaru left him to it and returned to his work, only looking up when the door to the lab opened and closed. He expected to see Anko or Kabuto, perhaps, trying to get a free lunch out of him, but instead saw a flash of purple fabric vanishing through the door to the front room. 

In a heartbeat, Orochimaru had snatched the child up, preventing him from escaping out the front door. 

“What’s there?” the child asked. “Anko-nee an’ Kabuto-nii went out there.” 

“That is Konoha,” Orochimaru said. “And you may go there when one of your fathers retrieves you.” 

The child nodded. “Kabuto-nii said I have a Daddy and a Papa.” 

“That is true,” Orochimaru said. “And they will retrieve you, and then you will be out of my hair and I will no longer be responsible for your training as a shinobi.” 

“But I like training,” the child said. 

“Good. Then you can continue to train while you wait for your parents.” Orochimaru deposited the child back in the lab. “Now, continue to practice walking up the wall. You did it once, but that is only the beginning. You should be able to do it in your sleep.” 

The child returned to walking up the wall and, once he had gained more confidence, running up the wall. Eventually, he started to walk on the ceiling, laughing at how it made all his clothing fall towards the ground. 

The door opened, and Orochimaru looked up, ready to foil another escape attempt. Instead, he found Kabuto and Anko. 

“Oh, cool,” Anko said. “Are we teaching the brat ninja tricks now? I wanna teach him how to throw a senbon.” 

“You may teach him to throw dango sticks, and nothing more,” Orochimaru said. “I have not tested his self-preservation instincts sufficiently to trust him around sharp objects.” 

“We shouldn’t be teaching him anything,” Kabuto said firmly. 

“Well, someone had to counteract your dreadful books rotting his brain,” Orochimaru said. 

“Rotting his—those are educational books for children!”

“Ah, yes, ‘the cat says meow.’ If this is the height of education, I fear for the future of our ranks,” Orochimaru said. 

“Shishou, he’s not even four,” Kabuto said. 

“Old enough to train,” Orochimaru said. 

Kabuto, unfortunately, did not like to hear that particular truth, and set about avoiding all of his work in favor of loudly reading to the child from a book apparently titled ‘Families Come in All Shapes and Sizes.’ Orochimaru theorized this because the phrase was repeated on every single page. 

“The whole village of Konoha is one big family!” Kabuto cheerfully declared, at which point Orochimaru had to leave the lab and decimate a training ground. Tsunade, unfortunately, had still not returned from her little sojourn to Uzushio, or he would have enlisted her. 

By the time he returned, Kabuto had left, and Anko and the child had taken to throwing dango sticks at the wall of the front room. So long as they were not making a mess in the lab, Orochimaru did not much care, so he left them to it. Unfortunately, they were still incredibly loud and distracting. Orochimaru was becoming increasingly glad that the child would soon be gone. His lab had not been productive for nearly two weeks; the child was an unacceptable disruption, and Orochimaru was counting down the minutes until Kakashi or the Uchiha boy would retrieve him. 


	22. Chapter 22

Usually when Obito got back from a mission, no one was there to greet him. It was kind of hard to greet people exactly when they came home, since usually they didn’t send along advance notice that they were returning. So it was unusual to return and immediately have a snake wind its way around his ankle. 

“Oh, hey,” he said. “Are you one of Kakashi’s?” 

The snake flicked its tongue at him. “Come to the lab.” 

With that, it was gone. Obito quickly went to hand in his mission scroll and report before heading to the lab, knowing that with Kakashi he would end up getting distracted and forget to turn them in entirely. 

When he reached the lab, however, Kakashi was nowhere to be found. 

Instead, Orochimaru appeared in front of him—something that always made Obito gulp in fear—and dropped something into Obito’s arms. “Congratulations. It’s a child. Now get out of here.” 

Obito looked down at the kid in his arms, who looked up at him in return. He was a cute kid, sure, with big black eyes and fluffy white hair, but Obito wasn’t exactly sure why Orochimaru was giving the kid to Obito—and come to think of it, why did Orochimaru have a kid in the first place?

Unfortunately, Orochimaru had already vanished from the laboratory, leaving Obito alone with the kid and Anko. 

“Uh, Anko? Why’s Orochimaru giving me a kid.” 

“That’s your and Kakashi’s kid, duh,” Anko said, not looking up from her magazine. “You’re a lucky guy. Not everyone has a boyfriend with the means to special order a baby.” 

“Mine and Kakashi’s? But how?” Obito blurted. 

Anko sighed, annoyed. “You really want the details? Because I don’t know them. Something about taking your genetic material and Kakashi’s and making a baby out of it. Kabuto would know more. Oh, and Kabuto put together an information packet for you. Take it on your way out.” 

Obito’s throat went dry. Okay, so Kakashi had apparently gone and gotten them a baby. That was—okay, that was something Obito was not ready for, and he definitely had some questions for Kakashi whenever he got home.  _ What the hell were you thinking _ , mostly. Obito could barely take care of a house plant—how was he supposed to take care of a kid? 

But that wasn’t the worst of it. The worst part of it was that if the Uchiha knew that Orochimaru had artificially created an Uchiha baby, one with the potential to awaken the Sharingan, they would riot in the streets. Also, they would probably kill Orochimaru, or at least try to. Obito wasn’t really sure if Orochimaru could be killed. 

The door opened and closed, and Obito realized he was alone in the lab. He took in a deep, shaky breath. “Okay. First things first. Let’s get you home without anyone seeing I have a kid and asking questions.” 

Obito had never been more thankful for the Mangekyo Sharingan. 

He opened a portal directly to the house Kakashi had built on the outskirts of the village, hidden in a forest that Kakashi had grown himself. The closest thing to them was a training ground that Gai liked to use, and even that was far enough away that Obito couldn’t even hear the people training there. 

Once home, he shut the door and locked it behind him before lowering the kid down to the ground. “Okay,” he sighed. “Let’s go talk over there, uh—what’s your name?” 

“Hatake-chan,” the kid said. 

“That’s your last name,” Obito said. He skimmed the information packet, but didn’t see a name anywhere. Mostly it looked like medical information. He did spot the kid’s birthday. November—he’d be four in about six months. “They didn’t give you a first name?” 

The kid wasn’t paying attention, instead staring around the room with wide eyes. 

Obito sighed and sat down on the couch. He knew the Hatake tended to name their kids after agricultural terms. What was he supposed to do, name him after a plant or something? “Onshitsu . . . Kaitaku . . . those would be stupid names,” he muttered to himself. “Kousaku? Housaku? Minoru . . . Minori?” 

The kid was looking at him. 

Obito beckoned to him. “Hey, Minori. Come here.” 

The kid hesitated just a moment before walking over to the couch. Obito had beckoned him, but he wasn’t really sure what to do with him. He’d known a lot of little kids over the years, from Shisui and Itachi to Heiwa and Nawanuke, but all he’d really done was play with them now and then. Three-year-olds needed—what did they need? Food? Water? School?

Obito groaned and put a hand over his eyes. “Shit. What am I supposed to do with a kid?” 

“ . . . Do you . . . not want me?” 

Obito sat up and looked at the kid, with his big black eyes—Obito’s eyes. “Aw, what the hell,” he said, and bundled him into a hug. The kid didn’t resist, but he didn’t exactly hug back either, instead sitting limply in Obito’s lab. “Of course I want you. I might not know what I’m doing, but I want you.” 

Slowly, the kid—Minori—mimicked Obito, wrapping his arms around Obito’s neck. “Kakashi’s got a lot of explaining to do once he gets home, but that’s nothing for you to worry about. All you need to worry about is getting some sun. You look like a ghost.” 

Obito opened up the porch doors and together they sat out in the sun, eating sweet watermelon with sticky fingers while Obito flipped through his photo albums and taught Minori everything he needed to know. Meanwhile, Rice slipped silently through the village, bringing Sakumo a message that would summon him to the house once Minori was asleep. 

Minori, however, did not want to go to sleep. 

“But what about training,” he said, as Obito made dinner. 

“Training? It’s almost time for dinner,” Obito said. “What training—agh, the fish! Minori, tell me after dinner.” 

“Yes, Papa,” Minori said, and Obito narrowly avoided dumping all the vegetables he’d been cutting in the trash. 

Minori happily drank his miso soup with eggplant—Obito had gotten into the habit of making that for dinner, since it was Kakashi’s favorite—but then proceeded to stare at his fish and vegetables. After a moment, he stared at Obito, who had just picked up a vegetable with his chopsticks and shoved it into his mouth. 

Minori picked up the chopsticks and attempted to mimic Obito’s grip. Obito couldn’t help but snort. “Uh, let me help you with that. Like this—see?” 

Carefully, he arranged Minori’s hand so he was holding the chopsticks properly. “Now, like this,” Obito said, and demonstrating picking up a carrot and eating it. 

Slowly, Minori began to eat. He dropped more food than he managed to get in his mouth, but Obito figured it was good enough. First parenting moment successfully navigated. 

Oh, god, he was a parent—but that was something to freak out about at a later moment, when he wasn’t figuring out how to get a toddler to agree to go to bed. 

“But what about training,” Minori repeated, as Obito washed the dishes. 

“What training?” Obito asked. 

“This training!” 

Obito turned around, but didn’t see Minori until, a sense of foreboding falling over him, he looked up. Minori, standing on the ceiling, looked back at him. “Gah! Minori, what’re you doing—you’ll fall!” 

Minori stared at him. He didn’t fall. 

Obito took a deep breath. “Okay. So you can do the wall-walking trick already. Uh, who taught you that?” 

“Mama,” Minori said. 

“You have a—uh, never mind. Someone at the lab taught you, right? Anko? Kabuto?” 

“Mama,” Minori repeated. 

“Please tell me that doesn’t mean Orochimaru,” Obito said. 

Minori nodded. Obito breathed in, breathed out, and decided to set aside the question of why his kid was calling Orochimaru ‘Mama.’ It was probably just a really, really unfortunate mispronunciation. “Okay. Well, uh, good job on learning that. I don’t think I learned that until I was twelve or thirteen. Have you learned anything else?” 

“Medididation,” Minori said. 

“Meditation? Okay, that’s pretty harmless,” Obito said. 

“And throwing sticks,” Minori said. 

“Ooookay, that’s a little less harmless,” Obito said. “Lets, uh, not throw sticks without an adult around, okay? Let’s make that a rule.” 

Minori stared at him. 

“How about we . . . come down from the ceiling,” Obito said. 

Minori walked back down the wall until he stood in front of Obito. He stood there, clearly waiting for something. 

“Bed?” Obito said, hopefully. 

“Training,” Minori said. 

Obito looked at the clock; it was almost ten, and he’d expected to have Minori in bed. Kids were supposed to go to bed early, right? But now Sakumo was due to arrive any moment. “We’ll train in the morning, okay? But now you have to go to bed.” 

Minori was still staring at him. 

It looked like Obito was just going to have to put him in bed and hope that it didn’t cause a Nawanuke-style tantrum or something. Obito steeled himself and prepared to execute this plan, only for the door to open. 

“Obito? I got your message.” 

Sakumo stood in the doorway, removing his shoes for slippers. He looked up, spotted Minori, and smiled. “Oh? Who’s this? Are you babysitting?” 

“Uh, not exactly,” Obito hedged. 

Sakumo stepped into the living room. “Not exactly?” 

“Does he look . . . familiar to you?” 

Sakumo crouched and looked Minori in the eyes. After a moment, a frown spread across his face. He picked Minori up by the armpits and held him up so that his face was next to Obito’s. His eyes flicked from Minori’s to Obito’s. 

“Please tell me that this is a relative of yours, and Orochimaru and Kakashi didn’t do something stupid,” he said. 

“He is a relative . . . technically,” Obito said. 

“Orochimaru and Kakashi did something stupid,” Sakumo sighed, lowering Minori back to the ground. “Let me guess. He’s yours and Kakashi’s.” 

“Yeah, basically,” Obito said. “Except he’s three, somehow? I don’t think they’ve been working on this for three years.” 

“Orochimaru knows all kinds of tricks to speed up physical growth,” Sakumo said absentmindedly, as he crouched back down to look at Minori. “Now, what’s your name?” 

Minori looked up at Obito. Obito nodded in what he hoped was an encouraging manner. “My first name is Minori. My last name is Hatake.” 

“Minori Hatake? That’s a nice name,” Sakumo said. He looked up at Obito. “Kakashi named him?” 

“Uh, I did, actually. I hope that’s okay,” Obito said. 

Sakumo smiled. “It’s a very appropriate name. My name is Sakumo Hatake. I’m your Jii-chan, your father’s father.” 

Minori looked at Obito. “Papa’s father?” 

“Not mine,” Obito said.

“Daddy’s father,” Minori concluded with a nod. 

Sakumo ruffled his hair. “You’re very smart. Now, I have to talk about something with your Papa, so why don’t you run along to bed.” 

“But training,” Minori said. 

Sakumo looked to Obito for an explanation. “I guess Orochimaru was training with him at night? He walked up the wall earlier. Scared the cra—I mean, uh, it scared me,” Obito said. “I was trying to get him to go to bed.” 

Sakumo nodded. “I see. Well, Minori, your Papa likes to train in the morning. You should go to bed now, so you’re awake and ready to train with him. Wouldn’t that be more fun than training alone?” 

After a moment, Minori nodded. Obito breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks, Shishou. I’ll get him ready for bed.” 

Minori was surprisingly compliant while brushing his teeth and getting ready for bed. Obito thanked everything in the world that Minori didn’t seem to be another Nawanuke; Obito was not prepared to get kicked in the nuts on the regular. 

They didn’t have another bed, or even a spare futon, so Obito tucked Minori into the bed he shared with Kakashi before joining Sakumo in the living room. 

“The Uchiha are going to riot if they find out,” Sakumo said. “Especially since he has your eyes.” 

Obito sighed and sank onto the couch. “Yeah, I know. Dammit, Kakashi, what were you thinking?” 

“Knowing Kakashi, that it would make you happy,” Sakumo said. “And Orochimaru probably just thought it would be interesting.” 

“I don’t know what to do,” Obito sighed. 

Sakumo stood. “I have a plan. Kakashi is due to return in two days. Until then, keep him hidden here. Don’t even let your friends see him. Don’t mention him to anybody. If you train with him, train inside. Understood?” 

“Understood,” Obito agreed. 

He really hoped that Sakumo’s plan, whatever it was, worked out. 

***

Usually when Kakashi returned home from a long mission, he was greeted with an enthusiastic kiss and promptly dragged off to the bedroom. It was a custom he’d quickly come to enjoy and look forward to. 

Being greeted with Obito standing in the entryway, hands on his hips and a scowl on his face, was a new one. 

“I’m home,” Kakashi said. Obito didn’t move. “ . . . Can I come in?” 

“Kakashi,” Obito said. “What did we talk about after that whole marriage misunderstanding?” 

“That . . . we would communicate clearly from now on, to avoid other misunderstandings? And that I would make it clear when I was asking you things whether I was talking in general terms, or about immediate plans for the future?” Kakashi guessed, mind whirring as he tried to figure out what he had done. 

“Then explain this,” Obito said, reaching off to the side, out of Kakashi’s view, and pulling a small child into view. 

“Oh,” Kakashi said. “Orochimaru said he was going to wait until I told him to do that.” 

“Apparently, plans change,” Obito said. “So, why was Orochimaru making babies out of our genetic material?” 

“Because . . . I told him to?” Kakashi said. 

“And why did you tell him to?” Obito said. 

“Because I asked you if you wanted kids now, and you said yes,” Kakashi said. 

Obito gaped at him. “Wha—when did you do that?” 

“When you were babysitting Heiwa,” Kakashi said. 

“That was months ago!” Obito exclaimed. 

Kakashi shrugged. “It was a long-term plan. It was supposed to be more long term. I wanted to get the house ready first.” 

“Oh, you did, did you,” Obito said. “You should’ve made it more clear! I don’t remember that at all!” 

“I asked you about it two other times. I asked you if you wanted a boy or a girl,” Kakashi said. 

“What—wait, I remember that! You asked me if I preferred boys or girls. I thought you meant, you know, dating and stuff!” 

“Obito, we’re married. Why would I ask you about your dating preferences?” 

“I don’t know, you ask me weird stuff all the time! Well, what about the other time you asked?” 

“I asked if you wanted whether it was a boy or girl to be a surprise,” Kakashi said. 

“Okay, that one I really don’t remember,” Obito said. 

Kakashi thought back. “You might have still been half-asleep.” 

Obito glared at him, unimpressed. “New rule. You aren’t allowed to ask me things when I’m in the middle of doing something else anymore.” 

“But that’s inefficient,” Kakashi said. 

“You’re going to have to live with it, because that’s how we end up with surprise babies,” Obito said. 

“Can I meet my kid now?” Kakashi asked. “Also, can I come inside?” 

“Minori, this is your daddy,” Obito said, bouncing the kid on his hip. “He’s a big idiot.” 

“Why is that my introduction?” Kakashi asked. “So, is it a boy or a girl?” 

“He’s a boy,” Obito said. “Congratulations.” 

Kakashi made to step inside, only for Obito to block him. “ _ You  _ aren’t coming inside.  _ You  _ get to go to the Hokage’s office and get Shishou, so that he can tell us his plan to fix this mess.” 

“What’s there to fix?” Kakashi asked. 

Obito shot him a look, the kind that plainly said Kakashi was an idiot. It was a new experience; usually, Kakashi was the one giving those looks out, not receiving them. “Kakashi. The Uchiha.” 

“Ah,” Kakashi said, realizing. “I hadn’t thought of that.” 

“Neither did Orochimaru, obviously,” Obito said. “Luckily, Shishou has a plan. Go get him. C’mon, Minori, let’s have lunch while Daddy gets Jii-chan.” 

“Can we train after?” 

The door shut, cutting off the conversation. Kakashi stared at the door for a moment longer before sighing and heading back to the village. Somehow, he’d still managed to mess it up, and now Obito was angry with him. Kakashi  _ had  _ asked him if he’d wanted a kid, when the thought occurred to him while watching Obito play with Heiwa. 

He’d thought that Obito would like having a kid. And they were old enough, nineteen and almost eighteen. Itachi’s mother had been about the same age when she’d had him. And Kakashi . . . 

Kakashi hadn’t wanted to wait. Not when he and Obito were off on dangerous missions every other week. Not when a single wrong move might result in one of them returning home alone, or neither of them returning. 

Kakashi didn’t want to leave Obito alone. 

Kakashi didn’t want to be left alone. 

He took off at a run, not wanting to be alone with his thoughts for too long. Not towards the Hokage’s office, though. He had another stop to make first. 

When he reached Orochimaru’s laboratory, he found both Anko and Kabuto in the front room. Anko winced at his arrival. “You better not go in. Sensei is  _ pissed _ . Like, more pissed than that time we got drunk on his good sake.” 

“He’s been furious ever since the Hokage came by two days ago,” Kabuto said. “Anko and I have been running interference.” 

“That’s okay. I just had a question,” Kakashi said. “The kid—Minori. What happened? Orochimaru said he would ask me before the final experiment.” 

Kabuto pushed his glasses up his nose. “It was fascinating, really. At first, his body was functioning, but I wouldn’t have really called him  _ alive  _ except in the most technical sense. Essentially, he was an empty shell. And then he woke up. I must confess, we haven’t the faintest idea what happened. It had Shishou quite curious in further experiments.” 

“And then the Hokage shut that down,” Anko interrupted.

“Ah. Yes, I should go speak to him,” Kakashi said. 

A crash resounded from inside the lab, followed by loud, furious hissing. 

“Get out while you can,” Anko advised. 

Kakashi made his escape, racing across the village to the Hokage’s office. His timing was unfortunate, and he ended up having to wait almost an hour for Sakumo to be available. A man wrapped in bandages glared at Kakashi as they passed each other. 

Sakumo was rubbing his temples when Kakashi entered. “That man,” he sighed, as he looked up. “And here’s my other headache.” 

Kakashi stood in front of the desk as Sakumo dismissed the ANBU and activated a seal to prevent eavesdropping. 

“I won’t ask what you were thinking,” Sakumo said. “You already know that you should have been clear with your intentions to Obito—more clear than you were—and that you should have informed me and gained my permission. You know full well that the Uchiha aren’t happy. This could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Now, you’re going to fix this. You will sneak Minori out of the village, and bring him back in through the village gates. You will say he is your son, and nothing else. You will say nothing when people ask about his mother. Let people draw their own conclusions to the matter. Understand?” 

Kakashi nodded sharply. “I understand, Hokage-sama.” 

“Good. Now go. If anyone asks, you are being sent out on another mission. Return in two weeks time.” 

Kakashi left the office without further ado; it wasn’t often that his father was upset with him, and he had to admit that it wasn’t a pleasant feeling. He returned to the house, tentatively opening the door. To his relief, Obito wasn’t blocking the door. 

Kakashi removed his shoes and stepped into the house. Obito was lying on the couch, Minori in his lap. They were reading, but not a book for children. After a moment of listening, he realized they were reading one of his strategy books. 

Obito looked up as Kakashi entered, breaking off mid-sentence. “What did Shishou say?” 

“I’m to sneak out of the village, and take him in through the gate in two weeks,” Kakashi said. “We’re to pretend he’s my son with an unnamed mother.” 

Obito frowned. “Why yours? He’s obviously related to the Uchiha.” 

“Hatake chakra,” Kakashi said. “It’s equally obvious he’s a Hatake, and there are far more Uchiha than Hatake. I suppose people will assume I had him with an Uchiha woman.” 

Obito breathed out. “That won’t make the Uchiha happy.” 

“But they won’t be as furious as they would be if they knew Orochimaru could grow children with the Sharingan in his lab.” 

Obito stroked Minori’s hair. “Maybe he won’t have the Sharingan. Not every Uchiha does.” 

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Kakashi said. “For now, we’ll act on the assumption that he has the potential to develop it. I need to take him with me.” 

Slowly, Obito set Minori down on the ground. “I’ll get some food for you. Make sure you’re packed.” 

Left alone with Minori, Kakashi took a moment to observe him. His hair was white and fluffy; Kakashi had no idea where he’d gotten that particular trait. His skin was pale, even lighter than Kakashi’s, although not as light as Orochimaru’s. His eyes were unmistakeably Obito’s, although Kakashi had never seen Obito make quite that expression. Privately, he thought that Minori’s wide-eyed stare reminded him of a bug. He also didn’t seem to have figured out blinking, and kept looking startled whenever he blinked involuntarily. 

“Blinking keeps your eyes from drying out,” Kakashi informed him, getting a blank stare in response. “Blinking is when you quickly close your eyes. Like this.” 

Kakashi blinked to demonstrate, and Minori imitated him by blinking a few times. Now he looked much less like a bug. 

Satisfied, Kakashi resumed his observation. He was small, but a quick glance at the packet of information left on the table showed that he was three years and six months old. Also, that he had received all his vaccinations required at that age, and that Kabuto had given him a check-up and a clean bill of health. For some reason, he was wearing clothing that looked like it had come straight out of a ninja supply shop. At least he was well-dressed for their mission. 

Obito returned, a scroll in hand. “I packed food for Minori.” 

“Not for me?” Kakashi asked, accepting the scroll. 

“You can eat ration bars.” Obito said. He looked away, but then quickly moved forward and pressed a kiss to Kakashi’s lips. “Come back safe. And take care of Minori.” 

Kakashi attached the scroll to his belt while Obito gave Minori a hug and a kiss, which Minori mimicked. 

“Don’t worry about sneaking out,” Obito said, Sharingan flashing red as he opened up a portal. “I’ll send you somewhere far enough away that it’ll take you two weeks to get back, if you walk.” 

“Reassuring,” Kakashi said. He picked Minori up, and with a final wave at Obito, stepped through the portal. 

They emerged in the middle of the forest, slightly off to the side of the road. If Kakashi recognized his landmarks correctly, they were somewhere close to the Suna border, although still far enough away that they wouldn’t encounter any border patrols. 

He looked at Minori, who was staring at the trees with wide, unblinking eyes. “Well, Micchan, looks like it’s just you and me. Let’s head home.” 

“Can we train here?” Minori asked, still gaping at their surroundings. Kakashi was beginning to wonder if he had ever seen a tree before. 

“Train?” 

Minori nodded. “Mama showed me how to walk on walls and Anko-nee-chan showed me how to throw sticks.” 

“Ah, that kind of training. I don’t see why not,” Kakashi said. “It’s not like we’ll have much else to do. Two weeks is a lot of time, after all.” 

Minori grinned, and Kakashi couldn’t help but smile in return as warmth filled his chest.

In that moment, Minori looked just like Obito. 

***

When Naruto was five years old, he entered the Ninja Academy in Uzushio. Not officially, of course; Tsubame entered him under a false name, one of many Uzumaki children. He wasn’t even the youngest one there. Konoha had increased the Academy enrollment age to eight, but in Uzushio children were entered whenever their parents thought they were ready, or whenever they demanded to be enrolled. The youngest kid in Naruto’s class had just turned four, and the oldest was already eight. 

With Naruto in the Academy, Narumi was put back on the official mission roster. Naruto was used to his uncle going on occasional trips to Konoha, and didn’t see much difference between that and missions. Missions were usually longer, but Naruto didn't care, too busy playing with the other kids and his best friend Karin—which had been a surprise for Narumi. 

His missions ranged from kind of boring to dangerously exciting. His current mission had been leaning more towards the former; he’d spent about a week tracking some missing-nin reported to have some skill with seals. He’d been looking forward to a good fight, only to discover that the guy had been crushed by a falling rock and died. 

Narumi had hoped that maybe the guy had faked his death and kept a watch for a day just in case, but eventually had to admit that this was just going to be a mission with an anticlimactic ending. 

And then the puppets attacked. 

They announced their presence with a spray of needles, which Narumi dodged on reflex. The puppets burst out of the trees, and he responded by creating a horde of shadow clones. He had a lot of practice from fighting puppets in the war, and knew most of their tricks—namely, he knew that getting too close was a good way to end up dead by some weird, poisoned mechanism. Sending in shadow clones with explosive seals was the best way to get rid of them, when you could make as many clones as Narumi. They could take the brunt of the attacks while he prepared seals to take out the puppets. 

Taking out the puppet users was the best way to stop the attack, but without a sensor to help him, he’d have a hard time picking them out of the middle of the forest. He’d smash the puppets, and then the puppet users would have to confront him themselves or run away. 

He wasn’t expecting sand to suddenly rise up and cover his body all the way up to his neck. The puppets picked off the last of his clones, then vanished back into the forest. 

Two men emerged from the forest. One of them had bright red hair and a familiar face—Sasori. The other, with light brown hair, wasn’t familiar to Narumi. He only realized who he was when a very familiar child stepped out of the forest behind them. 

“Narumi Uzumaki,” Yashamaru greeted, as Gaara stepped forwards to stand beside him. 

“Yashamaru, Sasori, Gaara,” Narumi said. Gaara’s eyes widened in surprise at being addressed. 

“You’ve done your homework,” Yashamaru said. 

“So have you. I mean, I assume you have. I don’t think you decided to ambush me for no reason,” Narumi said. 

“They say that you fixed a faulty jinchuuriki seal,” Yashamaru said. 

“Yeah, I did,” Narumi said, looking at Gaara. “Why? You got a seal that needs fixing?” 

“A jinchuuriki seal,” Yashamaru said. “The demon has too much influence over the jinchuuriki, and frequently tries to break out.” 

“I can take a look,” Narumi said, “But you’ll have to let me go first.” 

Yashamaru nodded to Gaara, and the sand melted away. Narumi shook the remaining bits of sand off him and stretched out. “Okay, lie down, get comfortable, and lift up your shirt. This might take a while.” 

“Don’t try anything,” Yashamaru warned. “Or we’ll kill you where you stand.” 

Looking at the menacing expression on Sasori’s face, Narumi believed him. He waited for Gaara to lie down before taking a seat beside him and pulling out a pot of ink and a brush. “Okay, let’s take a look at what we’ve got,” he muttered, pressing his fingers to Gaara’s stomach and channeling his chakra through the seal. The stark, black lines of the seal appeared, spreading out from Gaara’s belly button. 

Narumi whistled. “No wonder you’re having issues. There’s basically no separation between Gaara and the Ichibi. Don’t worry, I’ll see what I can do. Hold still—it’ll be cold.” 

Slowly, a new seal took form on Gaara’s stomach, modifying the old one underneath it. It wasn’t too hard, really; he had a lot of practice at sealing on the fly, and he’d seen Gaara’s seal before, when Gaara had shown it to him in the future he had left behind. Really, he was more worried about getting away after finishing the seal. He doubted Yashamaru and Sasori were going to thank him for his help and let him go home. The puppets still surrounding the area were a bit of a clue. 

When he went to refresh his ink, he dripped some onto his free hand. Slowly, so that Yashamaru wouldn’t notice any strange movements, he traced out a seal on his leg and activated it. Gaara was the only one easily able to see what Narumi was doing, and he was focused on the growing seal on his stomach. 

“I’ve got a nephew your age, you know,” Narumi said. “His name’s Naruto.”

He glanced away from the seal and caught Gaara staring at him. Narumi grinned at him before dipping his brush in the ink and continuing his work. “He’s going to be a ninja.” 

Gaara looked behind Narumi before answering. “Me . . . me too.”

“You too, uh?” Narumi said. “Naruto likes to learn about ninjutsu and fuinjutsu. How about you?” 

“My father teaches me ninjutsu,” Gaara said, before falling silent with another look behind Narumi. 

“Finish the seal,” Sasori said. 

“No small-talk, huh?” Narumi sighed. “Okay, okay.” 

A bird hooted nearby. 

Narumi laid down the last element of the seal. “There we go. All set. Gaara should be all in control now.” 

In an instant, Yashamaru had knelt on Gaara’s other side, helping him sit up. “How do you feel?” 

Gaara’s hands twisted in his shirt. “It’s . . . quiet.” 

Yashamaru sighed. “Then it worked.” 

Behind him, Narumi heard the quiet sound of a weapon being drawn. He rolled out of the way, at the same time as five cloaked figures dropped out of the trees. 

The ANBU stared down the visitors from Suna. Yashamaru pushed Gaara behind him as he stood, weapon drawn. 

Narumi stood and walked to the front of the group, waving at the ANBU to relax. They didn’t, of course, but at least he’d tried. 

“How about we all go our separate ways,” he said to Yashamaru and Sasori. “I’m pretty sure you’ve got more important things to take care of.” 

He nodded towards Gaara. Yashamaru glanced backwards at Gaara, then looked at the ANBU. After a moment, Yashamaru nodded and stepped back. 

“Sasori, let’s go,” he said. “I’ll take responsibility.” 

With that, the three of them left, taking Sasori’s puppets with them. 

Narumi grinned at the ANBU. “Thanks. You guys sure came fast. I was expecting to stall for time.” 

“You activated the highest priority distress seal,” said a masked ANBU with a familiar voice—Narumi was pretty sure it was Kogane Senju. “There was no reason for us to delay.” 

“Still, thanks. I was afraid that would get messy, and I didn’t really want to fight a jinchuuriki,” Narumi said. “I have to head to Uzushio and report in.” 

The ANBU nodded. “We will conduct an investigation of the area and ensure the Suna shinobi have left the country.” 

Whistling, Narumi swung himself up into the trees and headed towards Uzushio, leaving the ANBU to their work. That had worked out better than he’d expected; he thought he would have to wait until the chuunin exams to fix Gaara’s seal. Maybe now Yashamaru would survive, and Gaara wouldn’t go completely nuts. He’d have to wait and see; for now, he was heading back to Uzushio. 

Maybe he’d make ramen for Naruto to celebrate. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Minori (実り): harvest, crop


	23. Chapter 23

“Naruto, wait up!”

Naruto, halfway up a wall, twisted around and made a face at Karin as she chased after him. “Betcha can’t catch me!” he taunted. Karin snarled and hurled a kunai at him. Naruto yelped and scrambled up the wall, Karin hot on his heels. He jumped from the roof just as she reached up to grab him, boosting himself over the canal below with a rush of chakra. He stuck to the wall of the house on the opposite side and raced up to the roof.

“Get back here, Naruto!” Karin yelled as she chased after him. “You’re dead meat!”

Naruto leapt from the roof, over several familiar heads of red hair, and scrambled over the red tiles of the next roof. A blur out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and he threw himself down just as a boy leapt down at him from the second story of the house next door. The boy shrieked as he flew off the roof and landed with a splash. Naruto, snickering, picked himself up, only to yelp as something fast and heavy barreled into him.

He toppled off the roof and landed in the canal beneath it with a splash. He quickly swam back to the surface, gasping for air, and turned a glare on Karin as she popped up beside him.

“What’d you do that for?” he complained. “I almost won!”

“You pushed me!” she said. “I almost got trampled, you idiot.”

Naruto scowled, only to snicker as he took another look at her face. “You’ve got dirt all over you!”

Karin glared at him and splashed him with a wave of water. Naruto yelped as the salt stung his eyes, and quickly pulled himself all the way out of the water with chakra before she could take further vengeance. He’d just climbed onto the bridge over the canal and offered a hand to Karin when a dry voice said, “Wreaking havoc again, you two?”

Naruto turned around, grin at the ready, and pulled Karin with him as he spun around. “Jiji! We almost won!”

The Uzukage smiled down at him. “I see that. You two have gotten quite fast.”

“I’m gonna be the fastest! And the strongest! And then I’m gonna be Uzukage!” he declared.

He smiled fondly at Naruto and patted his head. “A good dream. You should hurry home now. Narumi is waiting for you. Karin, your mother is still working at the hospital. Go wait for her there.”

Karin frowned and glanced at Naruto, but reluctantly nodded. “Okay. See you tomorrow, Naruto.”

He waved cheerfully as he took off down the street, heading towards the residential district while Karin headed to the hospital. “See you, Karin! Let’s play ninja tomorrow!”

“Tomo’s gonna complain if we play ninja!” Karin said.

He made a face and shrugged. “She’s mean!” 

Karin’s words were lost to the rush of sea wind as he leapt into the air and ran up the side of a building. Red and yellow tiles clacked beneath his feet as he ran across the village, leaping across canals filled with fishermen and merchants peddling their wares, calling out to both the civilians on the walkways and waterways and the ninja leaping overhead. Naruto called out a cheerful greeting to a crowd of red-headed children before turning towards the outskirts of the village, towards the setting sun. The edge of the island rose up before him, and he leapt from the roof, plunging down towards the sea. 

He landed with ease, only sinking a few centimeters as his chakra adjusted to the rush of the current beneath him, and took off again. The sun was still bright enough that he could barely see, so he ran on blindly, trusting his memory to lead him. Then, as the sun dipped lower, dyeing the sea around him red and gold, an orange roof peaked out from above the horizon. Naruto made a mad dash for it, sprinting over the last meters of ocean towards the island. He threw himself on the sandy beach, panting, and laid there for a moment until he caught his breath. 

Naruto rose to his legs unsteadily, but didn’t stumble as he ran up the cliff path leading to the front door. The glass bead curtain in the doorway tinkled merrily as he brushed it aside, as it always did, but he soundlessly ran over the cool tile and stone floor as he headed up to the second story. 

He grinned upon seeing the open door to the study, ran in without a second thought, and collided with a strong, sturdy back. “Narumi-jichan, Narumi-jichan!” he chanted gleefully as he clambered up the man’s back, using whatever handholds presented themselves as he clawed his way to sit on his uncle’s shoulders. Narumi remained steady throughout the ordeal, calmly tracing ink over a scroll. Naruto looked down and observed for a moment. “Whatcha doin’?” 

“A storage seal for the hokage,” he said.

“What’s it gonna hold?” he asked. 

“Whatever he wants, ideally,” Narumi said. He finished the line of characters he was working on, and then set aside the brush. He scanned over the characters, nodded once, and then set it aside. Naruto looked at it and grimaced; that was more difficult than anything Narumi let him work on. It was way more complicated than the storage seals he got to make!

“Oh, yeah, Jiji said you wanted to talk to me,” he recalled. 

Narumi sighed and held onto Naruto’s ankles to help keep him steady as he stood. Naruto held onto his hair for extra grip, making use of the high ponytail that held his hair back while he worked on his seals. The world blurred around them with the speed of Narumi’s shunshin, but Naruto didn’t even have time to whoop gleefully, because they stopped on the rooftop only a moment later. 

“Take a seat, Naruto,” Narumi said with the rare seriousness that meant Naruto had to start being serious, too. Naruto nodded and shoved aside the sudden nerves fluttering in his stomach as he took a seat beside his uncle. 

They stared out at Uzushio for a moment, the red and gold and blue roofs lit up by the sun, before Narumi spoke. “It’s time I told you about your parents.” 

Naruto whipped around so quickly his neck cracked. “You said they died when I was born!” he accused as he rubbed his neck. 

“They did,” Narumi confirmed. “Today, I am going to tell you about who they were.” 

“Mom was an Uzumaki and Dad was your brother, right?” Naruto said. 

“My half-brother,” Narumi said. “Understand, Naruto, that what I’m going to tell you is an S-ranked secret. Do you know what that means?” 

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. “Um, is it like an S-ranked mission?” A sudden jolt of fear shot through him. “My parents weren’t missing nin, were they?” 

Narumi smiled slightly at that. “No, they served their villages faithfully their whole lives. An S-ranked secret is one that you can’t talk about on pain of death. You can’t tell anyone about this—not Karin, not any of your classmates. You can’t even talk about it with Uzukage-sama unless he tells you to, okay? This is not something you are to brag about, ever. This is a big responsibility. Are you ready?” 

Naruto gulped. “What if I’m not?” 

Narumi ruffled his hair. “Then I’ll ask you if you’re ready in a few years. This isn’t a once in a lifetime chance.” 

He took a deep breath. “I want to know. Tell me. I won’t ever tell anyone, ever. Promise!” 

“Alright,” Narumi said, and sighed slightly. Naruto stayed silent, recognizing the gleam in his eyes that said he was thinking. “Your mother’s name was Kushina Uzumaki. She grew up here, just as you did, until it was decided that she was to move to Konoha to become the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. She left the village and moved to Konoha, where she attended the academy and, eventually, joined the ranks of Konoha’s jounin.”

“My mom was a jinchuuriki too?” Naruto exclaimed. 

“Uzumaki have always been the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. You’re the third,” Narumi explained. “Mito, the Shodaime Hokage’s wife, was the first.” 

“And Mom was the second,” Naruto filled in. “Was she strong? What did she look like?” 

“Oh, she was very strong. Your father was terrified of her,” Narumi chuckled. “The Red Hot-Blooded Habanero, they called her. For her temper. She had red hair and violet eyes, but your face is shaped like hers, and you inherited her love of ramen.” 

Naruto grinned at that. “If she loved ramen, she must have been awesome!” 

“She was,” Narumi agreed. “But you understand, Naruto, why this is dangerous information. Your mother fought in the Third Shinobi War, and made a lot of enemies. If those people knew who you were, they would attack you. The information on your father is even more dangerous. Do you still want to know?” 

“I don’t back down!” Naruto declared. “Tell me.” 

“Your father was Minato Namikaze, the Yondaime Hokage.” 

Naruto stared at him. “Dad was . . . the Yondaime? Really?” 

Narumi nodded. “Saw him sworn in myself. Few people knew he was married to your mother, of course—they wanted to keep the relationship quiet until tensions from the war had died down—and that’s why I didn’t tell you until now. Your father has many enemies, Naruto. Even more than your mother.”

“Was he cool?” Naruto blurted. “What did he look like? He was super strong, right?” 

“He was cool,” Narumi said, laughing softly. “Of course, he was my little brother, so I never would’ve said so to his face. You look a lot like him. He had blond hair and blue eyes, just like you.” 

“And you!” Naruto said. 

A strange smile crossed Narumi’s face. “And me,” he agreed. “And he was super strong—you have to be strong to become Hokage—and he loved Konoha more than anything.” 

He looked out over Uzushio again, a strange look on his face. Naruto tried and failed to ignore the pit opening up in his stomach. “That wasn’t the only thing you wanted to talk to me about, was it?” he asked. 

Narumi looked at him in surprise, and then smiled. “You’re very perceptive, Naruto. Yes, there was more.” 

“You’re not going on a mission, are you?” he asked, and then, with an odd twisting feeling in his stomach, recalled that they’d been talking an awful lot about Konoha. “Are you going away? Am I going away? You’re not sending me away, are you?” 

“Calm down,” Narumi said, but Naruto noted that he didn’t say he was wrong yet. “You aren’t going anywhere on your own. You see, Naruto, both of your parents lived in Konoha, and were loyal Konoha ninja. You weren’t born in Uzushio. Rightfully, you are a citizen of Konoha. When you were born, the Sandaime Hokage wanted you to be raised there, and to attend the Academy there. Tsubame—I mean, the Uzukage—didn’t want you growing up alone, however, so the two of them made a deal. You would be raised in Uzushio, with your family, but you would attend the academy in Konoha once you were old enough.” 

“But I’ve been attending the academy for years!” Naruto protested. “Since I was five! I’m supposed to graduate in a year, and be on a team with Karin!” 

“That’s another thing you can’t tell people. The deal was that as soon as you were old enough to attend the academy, you would move to Konoha. The Uzukage wanted you prepared for anything by the time you moved there, so he enrolled you early in the academy here without Konoha’s knowledge. If people found out what he did, they could interpret it as him breaking the deal.” 

“Because Jiji enrolled me in the academy here but said I wasn’t old enough for Konoha’s academy? And some people might say he should’ve sent me straight to Konoha?” Naruto guessed. 

“Exactly,” Narumi agreed. “So, if anyone asks, I’ve been teaching you privately. Understand?” 

“I understand,” Naruto muttered. “But wait! I don’t even want to go to Konoha!” 

Narumi put a hand on his shoulder. Naruto resisted the urge to shrug it off, and settled for glowering resentfully at a seagull. “For the sake of our village,” Narumi said, “we often have to do things we don’t always agree with. What we can do is try to make things turn out for the best.”

“Why can’t I stay here? With you, and Karin,” he said, trying and failing to sound like he wasn’t whining. 

“Because you’re the child of two of Konoha’s strongest shinobi, and the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. If we kept you here, Konoha could go to war over you. Other countries would join in, either as allies or enemies of Konoha.” Naruto looked down guiltily. “But you won’t be alone. I’ll be leaving with you,” Narumi said, ruffling Naruto’s hair. 

“You?” Naruto stared at him. “But you’ve been an Uzushio shinobi since forever! You can’t leave!” 

“I’m not about to let you go running off to Konoha all alone. Just think of all the trouble you’d cause!” Narumi laughed. “Besides, Konoha’s a nice place. You’ve been there before — but you were probably too young to remember it.” 

Naruto scowled and kicked his heels against the tiles. “Karin won’t be there.” 

“No,” he agreed. “Karin is staying here. But you’ll make plenty of friends in Konoha. Your mother’s best friend has a son your age, you know.” 

“Really?” Naruto asked. 

“Really. Sasuke Uchiha. Mikoto Uchiha was a good friend of your mother’s. But you can’t tell him that, understand?”

“I understand,” Naruto said, less sulkily this time, feeling rather cheered at the mention of people who had known his mother. Narumi was his father’s brother, but really, he didn’t say much about Naruto’s parents. Naruto thought that maybe he didn’t even know them well. They had grown up in different villages, after all. 

He recalled then that Narumi had said Konoha didn’t know he’d spent the past three years at the academy, and gaped. “Ji-chan, you mean I’m going to have to start all over at the academy? Not fair!” 

Narumi’s laughter rang out over the sea, startling the seagulls that had gathered on the roof. They rose into the sky as one, squawking madly. Naruto laughed as he watched them careen about in the air and leaned into Narumi’s side. Behind them, the sun dipped beneath the horizon, and the bright gleam left the village rooftops along with it. Narumi prodded him up, and Naruto reluctantly obeyed, casting one last glance at the village as the last glimmers of sunlight faded away.

***

They left before the week was over, seen off by Karin and the Uzukage and what seemed like half the village. A genin team went with them—their first C-rank, Narumi knew, and one judged to be of little risk since they would be accompanied by both their jounin-sensei and Narumi himself. The three of them exchanged eager grins and whispers at first, but quieted as they left the village. 

“We’re going to be running most of the way to make it there as quickly as possible,” the Jounin-sensei said as they approached the edge of the island. “I expect you to tell us when you need a break, understand?” 

“Understood!” the genin chirped as one. 

“Naruto, on my back,” Narumi said, crouching down. “I don’t want you falling behind.” 

“I can run!” Naruto protested, but fell silent at a single stern glance. He obeyed with only a few muttered protests. Narumi stood and adjusted his grip on Naruto, and then nodded to the other jounin. With that, they were off, nearly flying over the ocean as they ran. The genin kept up easily—ninja children were water-walking practically the moment they learned to walk, and the civilian children learned soon after joining the academy out of necessity. 

“We’ll be meeting up with the Konoha party at the halfway point,” the Jounin-sensei continued as they ran. “We’re expecting two genin teams, a merchant family with two daughters, a blacksmith and her son, and five orphans, two girls and three boys. The children are all seven or eight, with the exception of the youngest merchant’s daughter, who is five.” 

“Two genin teams?” Narumi asked. 

“The Hokage assigned one to protect them all, and then the merchant hired another to protect his family and his merchandise, as I understood it,” he said. 

They adjusted their stride as they left the ocean for the land, and took to the trees the moment they entered the forest of Fire Country. The genin played around for a minute, jumping gleefully along the trees and running up and down the trunks. The jounin allowed this for a moment, likely allowing them to grow used to running on trees instead of water, before calling them to order with a sharp whistle. 

They eventually settled into a schedule, running for a few hours at a time with half-hour breaks in between, sleeping when it grew too dark to see the trees and Naruto had long-since fallen asleep on his back, and then picking up again shortly after dawn. They made good time, and were closer to three-fourths of the way there than one-half when they finally ran into the other party. 

The jounin held up a hand, and they stopped to watch them approach. Narumi counted them carefully. A jounin in the front, with the merchant. Two genin on the sides of the merchant’s carts, and one behind them. The merchant sat on the first cart, while his wife and daughters sat on the second. Behind them, a smaller cart carried a woman and her son—the blacksmith family. Another two genin bracketed their cart. Behind that followed a cart carrying five children, with another jounin and a genin behind it bringing up the rear. 

The jounin in the front didn’t pause, but Narumi noticed his eyes briefly flutter their way. Their jounin brought his hands to his mouth and made a birdcall—an owl—and then jumped down from the trees to walk beside the other party for a moment. 

“Any troubles?” their jounin asked the Konoha jounin. 

“If going at a snail’s pace counts as trouble,” the jounin said wryly. “No trouble at all. You?” 

“Signs of a bandit camp, near this road,” he said, tapping something on the jounin’s map. 

“Hey, Narumi-jichan, who’re they?” Naruto asked, pointing at the cart of orphans. 

“They’re moving to Uzushio. Uzukage-sama must have really pressed his advantage,” he said. “Konoha is getting me and you, so they benefit in the short term, but Uzushio is getting a new merchant family, a new blacksmith, three potential shinobi, and five definite shinobi.” 

“They’re going to be shinobi?” Naruto asked. 

“They’re orphans,” Narumi said. “Many orphans in ninja villages go on to attend the Academy.”

Their jounin leapt up to join them, and motioned them onwards. Naruto climbed back onto Narumi’s back, but before he could take off, Naruto twisted around and called out, “Hey! You guys gotta take care of Uzushio, okay? And my cousin Karin, too! She’s super cool, and really good at tag! Good luck at the Academy!” 

None of the children responded until one of them, a brown-haired girl, looked around at the silent faces around her and finally called out, “G-good luck! I’ll look for your cousin!” 

Satisfied, Naruto twisted around, and Narumi ran to join up with their genin team. 

“We should reach Konoha shortly after midday, if we continue at this pace,” the jounin sensei noted. “We’ve made good time. You’ll have time to look around Konoha, like you wanted.” 

“Wait, that’s why you’ve been such a slave-driver?” one of the boys said. “Sensei, I thought you were just being mean!” 

“We get to look around Konoha!” the girl cheered. “Come on, let’s go!” 

“I hear Konoha has great blacksmiths,” the other boy said gleefully before rushing off in her wake. 

“Now you’ve done it,” Narumi laughed, adjusting his pace to catch up to the children, who seemed to have made the thing into a race. “You’d better catch up or they’ll tear through the gates before you can stop them.” 

“At this rate, I think we’ll make it before lunch,” he noted wryly. “Maybe I should have mentioned shopping sooner.” 

“Uzukage-sama gave you the week, then?” he asked. 

“Two weeks,” he corrected. “One there, one back.” 

“And we took three days,” Naruto laughed. “They’ll be glad.” 

The walls of Konoha rose up before them, heralded by the gleeful shouts of the genin. “Quiet on a mission!” the jounin ordered, to no avail. “Shift to the road!” 

That, at least, they listened to, jumping down from the trees to run along the dirt road to the village. They slowed as the gates of the village came into view, and the genin finally allowed their sensei to overtake them as they approached the guard. 

A bored chuunin looked them over. “Mission scroll and identification,” he drawled. 

The jounin produced a scroll and his identification card from a pocket and handed it over to that chuunin, while his partner tended to Narumi and the genin. “Uzushiogakure Team Three reporting in for an escort mission,” he said. 

“Ah, the diplomat,” the chuunin said as he glanced over the scroll. “Yeah, this is all in order. We have quarters to house you and your genin team. Uzumaki-san, Hokage-sama is waiting for you.” 

A third chuunin escorted the genin team away, while the chuunin that had greeted them beckoned Narumi and Naruto forwards and began escorting them to the Hokage’s office. Narumi let Naruto down to walk, but Naruto kept hold of his hand as he gaped around the bustling streets. Compared to Uzushio, Konoha was a fairly large city. 

“Eeh, no one has red hair,” Naruto exclaimed, after a few moments. 

Narumi managed not to laugh, but was fairly sure he heard the chuunin snicker a bit. “Red hair’s a bit less common in Konoha,” he explained. 

“Everyone looks boring,” Naruto complained. “Hey, nii-san, are you all related or something? Why do you all have brown hair?” 

The chuunin looked back at them, clearly startled. “Eh? You mean me? No, most of us aren’t related. It’s just a common hair color.” 

“No, red’s a common hair color!” Naruto argued. 

“Red’s not common at all, unless you’re part of a clan,” the chuunin said. 

“Is so!” Naruto argued. 

“Is not! Wait a minute, why am I arguing with a kid?” 

“Am not a kid!” 

“Are too!” 

Narumi coughed delicately. “Thank you for the escort, but I think we’re here,” he said, motioning to the door in front of them and the receptionist looking at them impatiently. “Narumi Uzumaki to see the Hokage.” 

“Oh, you’re early,” she said. “He’s free right now, but he has a meeting in fifteen minutes, so make it fast.” 

Narumi eased open the door, ushering Naruto in ahead of him. A man with white hair looked up as the door opened, and smiled. “Narumi, I see you made it safely. And this must be Naruto.” 

“Hey, Sakumo. It’s been awhile,” he said. “And yep, this is Naruto. Naruto, this is Sakumo Hatake, the Godaime Hokage . . . and an old friend.” 

“This old man’s really the Hokage?” Naruto asked skeptically. 

Sakumo laughed. “Just like your mother, aren’t you? I am, and I’ve got the paperwork to prove it.” 

He stood up to clasp Narumi’s hand in his. “It’s good to see you again,” he said, smiling warmly into Narumi’s eyes. “Kakashi will be happy to see you.” 

“Just Kakashi, huh?” Narumi laughed. “How’s that kid doing, anyways? Keeping out of trouble?” 

“Ask him yourself,” Sakumo said, as leaves swirled through the room and a shinobi appeared before them. 

“Narumi-san,” Kakashi said. He turned a reproachful stare on his father. “You’re early.” 

He’d grown since Narumi had last seen him. He was taller, now, but still wore his usual mask and had his headband dipped down over his eye. Even then, Narumi could see the edges of the scars under his headband. 

“Kakashi, good to see you. Has your father managed to get you to take a genin team yet?” Narumi asked. 

“Not yet,” Kakashi said, his eyes straying towards Naruto.

Narumi grinned and pushed him forwards. “Naruto, this is Kakashi. He’s the Hokage’s son, and your father’s student.” 

“Eeh, Kakashi-nii, really?” Naruto exclaimed, bounding over to him. “So, you’ve gotta know all his super awesome techniques, right? You’ll show me, right? Hey, Kakashi-nii, play ninja with me!” 

Kakashi cast a pleading look at Narumi. Narumi laughed, but called Naruto back to him. “You can pester Kakashi later. He’s not going anywhere. We have to get settled in our new home.” 

“I think I’ve found a nice place,” Sakumo said, picking up on his prompting. “Not far from Kakashi’s place, so it’s a bit of a walk to the academy, but there’s lots of space to run around and it’s not too expensive.” 

“Doesn’t Kakashi live in the middle of a forest?” Narumi asked. 

Sakumo chuckled. “He does. I hope you don’t mind, but the forest has grown a bit . . . I think he thought Naruto would like it.” 

“I’m right here, you know,” Kakashi said plaintively. 

Sakumo waved a hand at him. “Oh, go take Naruto out for lunch, or something. He’s probably been eating rations for the past few days.” 

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, and Sakumo sighed and pulled out his wallet. “Leech,” he grumbled. “Be wary, Narumi. Kids will pester you for things long after they’re grown. Kakashi, bring Naruto to Narumi’s place when you’re done with lunch.” 

Kakashi rifled through the wallet for a moment before nodding. “Naruto, have you ever done shunshin before?” 

“Yeah!” Naruto cheered, and before Kakashi could say another word, scrambled up his body until he was perched on Kakashi’s shoulders, hands gripping his hair firmly and legs locked around him. “Go, Kakashi-nii!” 

Kakashi gave them one last glare before vanishing in a swirl of leaves. The moment he was gone, Sakumo and Narumi burst into laughter. “Oh, it’s as perfect as I thought it would be!” Sakumo laughed. 

“I thought Kakashi was going to pass out the moment he saw him,” Narumi chuckled. “DId you not tell him Naruto was coming?” 

“I said I needed him for a mission when I heard you’d arrived,” Sakumo chuckled. “His face—!” 

“He’s going to kill us, later, isn’t he,” Narumi said fondly. 

“He’d better not,” Sakumo said, just as fondly. “That brat took all my money.” 

Naruto laughed and leaned against the desk. “So, what’s the plan?” 

“I have Naruto enrolled in the newest Academy class,” Sakumo said, drawing out a stack of papers. “I filled out what I knew of the paperwork, but you’ll want to check it over. Class started a couple days ago, but he won’t have missed much.” 

Narumi glanced over the paperwork, occasionally filling in blank sections as Sakumo talked. “His teacher is Iruka Umino, a chuunin, and a good teacher from what I hear. There are a number of clan heirs in his class, as well. Hyuuga, Aburame, Nara, Yamanaka, Akimichi . . . there’s an Uchiha and an Inuzuka as well, but they have older siblings who are the heirs.” 

“Mikoto Uchiha was one of Kushina’s friends,” Narumi said. 

“True, but even if she notices anything, she knows not to say anything. She’s a smart woman,” he said. “The rest of the children I don’t know, I’m afraid.” 

“Such an elitist,” Narumi teased. “Only knowing the clan children. Tut tut, what would the civilian parents say?” 

“Shut up, you,” Sakumo grumbled. “Just because I have to listen to their damn parents complain day in and day out . . . anyways, you’ll have to go through a series of appointments with T&I before you can be officially confirmed as a Konoha shinobi. It’s mostly a formality at this point, but it’s protocol.” 

Narumi returned the finished school paperwork, only for Sakumo to hand him another stack. “Imagine,” Sakumo said drily. “Multiply that by about two hundred and you have an idea of what it’s like to be Hokage.” 

He sighed. “I hope Naruto’s having fun, at least.” 

***

Naruto whooped madly as the wind rushed past him. “Faster, Kakashi-nii! Faster!” 

“If we went any faster, we’d crash into a tree,” Kakashi said. Naruto pouted as, rather than speeding up, Kakashi instead began to slow down until he was running at a normal speed, and opened his mouth to complain about it just as another ninja fell into step beside them. 

“Hey, Kakashi! What’d your dad want? And who’s the kid?” A man with dark hair and equally dark eyes asked. “Hang on, is that—!” 

“Why, yes, Obito,” Kakashi said, loudly enough to talk over whatever it was the other man had been about to say. “That is the Uzushio diplomat’s nephew. Very astute of you.” 

“Right, right,” Obito said, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “It’s good to finally meet you, Naruto. I owe your uncle a lot.” 

“You know my uncle too, Obito-nii?” Naruto asked curiously. 

Obito grinned. “Obito-nii, huh? I like it. And yeah, I sure do. I’ll tell you what I can over lunch. You were headed to lunch, right?” 

“Ichiraku,” Kakashi said. 

Obito whooped and put on an extra burst of speed. “Come on then. Last one there has to pay!” 

Kakashi spurred into motion, the world blurring around them as they ran so quickly that they left a gust of wind in their wake. Naruto held on desperately, laughing at the top of his lungs even as the high speed stole the breath from his lungs. 

And then, all at once, they were still, and Naruto found himself sitting on a chair at a food stall next to Kakashi. A second later, Obito threw himself into the chair on the other side of Naruto with a fierce pout. 

“Looks like you’re paying again,” Kakashi said dryly. 

“Oh, shut up, bas—jerk,” Obito said. 

“Oh, it’s you two again!” an old man said happily. “No Rin today?” 

“She’s in surgery right now,” Obito said. “We’ve got a replacement instead.” 

Naruto squirmed as the man looked at him with surprise that quickly turned to happiness. “Well, who’s this young man, then?” he said. 

“I’m Naruto Uzumaki!” he declared. 

“I’m Teuchi.” Naruto shook the offered hand solemnly. “So, you like ramen, Naruto?”

“It’s my favorite!” Naruto cheered. “Narumi-ji-chan makes it sometimes.” 

Teuchi smiled down at him. “Well then, this bowl’s on the house. What’ll it be?”

“Miso!” Naruto declared. 

“Same for me, and pork for this loser,” Obito said, gesturing towards Kakashi. 

“Same as always. Coming right up!” Teuchi said. 

Naruto watched Teuchi prepare their ramen for a few moments before glancing over at Obito. He had shaggy black hair and black eyes, like a lot of the people in the village, but he looked a lot more cheerful than most of them. A pair of orange-tinted goggles hung around his neck. When Obito ran a hand through his hair, Naruto caught sight of a scar by the side of his eye, as if someone had tried to cut his eye and missed. “Hey, Obito-nii, how’d you know my uncle?” 

“Same reason Kakashi knows him. He helped us out a lot during the war,” Obito said. “We probably wouldn’t be alive without him.” 

“Oh. Narumi-ji-chan is pretty strong,” Naruto said cheerfully. “I’m gonna be even stronger someday!” 

Obito grinned down at him and ruffled his hair. “I’m sure you will!” 

A massive bowl of piping hot ramen was placed before him, and Naruto promptly abandoned the conversation in favor of staring ravenously at it. “One bowl of miso, with extra pork and fishcake,” Teuchi said cheerfully. “Enjoy!” 

Naruto whooped. “Thanks for the food, old man!” He took one bite, froze, and stared up at Teuchi with his mouth wide open. Kakashi reached over and closed it. “Old man,” Naruto said reverently the moment Kakashi’s finger left his chin. “This is the best ramen in the whole world!” 

Teuchi laughed. “I’m glad you like it! Now eat up, before it gets cold.” 

Naruto immediately started wolfing down his ramen, only vaguely paying attention to the conversation around him. 

“Are you gonna introduce him to Rin?” 

“Not today. Hokage-sama is going to work out an official meeting, I think. Of course, I’ll probably still end up being the one to do it...” 

“You know, he is your dad. It’s weird hearing you call him that.” 

“Obito, as a shinobi it’s only proper to address the Hokage by his rank. You should know better by now.” 

“You—I’m gonna—ugh!” 

Naruto held up the empty bowl. “Old man! More. Please,” he said, recalling his manners at the last moment. 

“Oho! I see you liked that,” Teuchi said proudly. “More of the same?” 

“Yes, please!” Once Teuchi had turned back to the stove, Naruto tugged on Kakashi’s sleeve. “Kakashi-nii, can I try yours?”

Kakashi sighed. “If you wanted pork, you should have asked.” Nevertheless, he nudged his bowl closer to Naruto, who grinned and helped himself to some of Kakashi’s broth and noodles. Obito took advantage of this and dumped his bamboo shoots into the bowl.

“Don’t be rude, Obito,” Kakashi said as he took the bowl again. 

“Says the guy who always shoves his vegetables onto my plate when we eat at Yakiniku Q.” 

“Well, if I wanted vegetables, I wouldn’t go to a yakiniku restaurant, would I?” 

“Jeez, Bakashi, even Minori isn’t as bad as you!” 

Naruto watched the two of them bicker until Teuchi brought over another bowl in favor of scarfing down the food rapidly. “Teuchi-jiji, I’m gonna come here every day after the academy!” he said happily. 

Obito laughed. “Slow down, squirt, before you choke!” 

“I think Narumi might have some issues with you eating ramen every day,” Kakashi said drily. 

Naruto set down his chopsticks. “Done! Thanks for the food, old man! Kakashi-nii, play ninja with me now!” 

“The deal was that I take you to lunch. Don’t you want to see your new house?” 

Well, Naruto did want to see their house. . .but he wanted to explore the rest of Konoha, too. Everybody knew that playing ninja was the best way to find secret places. He turned his best pleading look on Kakashi, who simply looked back with the same sleepy-eyed stare. 

“Pleeeeaase, Kakashi-nii? We can play ninja on the way to the house!” he said. 

Obito dropped a hand on Naruto’s head and ruffled his hair. “Come on, Kakashi, might as well. Just send a message to your dad. It’s been ages since I played ninja.” 

“Obito, we played ninja just last weekend,” Kakashi said, even as he stood. “Okay, Naruto, how are we playing?” 

“Hmm . . .” Naruto thought for a moment. Playing bodyguard was fun, but they didn’t have enough people for that. “Capture mission! Kakashi-nii, you’re it! Obito-nii, we have to get away!” 

He sprinted for the nearest wall and ran up it, only pausing when he realized the other two hadn’t followed him to the rooftop, and were still standing at Ramen Ichiraku, staring at him. “What’sa matter?” 

“You can walk on walls already, Naruto?” Obito asked. “I didn’t learn until I was a genin.” 

“Well, duh!” Naruto said. “It’s way easier than walking on water.” 

“You can walk on water, too?” Obito exclaimed. “Okay, I know people who didn’t learn that until they were chuunin.” 

Naruto laughed. “That’s dumb! I’ve been walking on water since forever. How’d you get around without knowing that?” 

“There’s much less water in Konoha,” Kakashi interrupted. “Most people get by fine without knowing that until they’re older.”

Obito whistled suddenly. “Man, he must have crazy chakra control! Remember how much trouble Rin had?” 

Naruto shifted back and forth. “Come on, let’s play already! Hurry up.” 

In a flash, Obito was beside him. “Alright, let’s go! Try to keep up, Kakashi!” 

Naruto let Obito lead the way as they raced across the rooftops. Occasionally, he’d look around, taking in the sights. Konoha was massive compared to Uzushio, a veritable maze of bustling streets filled with all manner of people. He spotted a market one moment, and then another, and then two more, several restaurants, and even more neighborhoods filled with houses and apartments. They were also several strange, walled-off districts.

“Hey, Obito-nii, what’re the places with walls around them?” 

“Clan compounds. Most clans live in a specific area, although not all of them are walled off. That’s the Hyuuga compound right there. The Uchiha have one, too.” 

“Who’re they?” Naruto asked. 

“The Uchiha clan helped found the village, and they run the military police. The Hyuuga are also pretty important,” Obito said, and then, quite abruptly, “Quick! There’s Kakashi, this way!” 

Naruto didn’t see Kakashi anywhere, but he ran after Obito anyways. They were heading away from the center of the village, now, towards the training grounds and the forest at the edge of the village. In one area, the forest seemed to have grown towards the village proper, so that it almost engulfed the houses. As they drew closer, Naruto realized that there was actually a house hidden among the trees. 

“See your house yet, Naruto?” Obito asked. 

“There’s so many trees!” Naruto exclaimed. 

Obito laughed. “Thank Kakashi for that. He thought you’d like trees to train with. Apparently having a whole training ground practically right next door wasn’t enough.” 

Obito slowed as they reached the edge of the forest. Kakashi joined them a moment later, not even winded by their run. 

“Narumi is on his way,” he said. 

“Not your dad?” 

“No, he’s busy with paperwork.” 

Naruto left them to their conversation in favor of running towards the house and throwing open the doors. They were sliding doors, unlike the ones in Uzushio, he noted curiously, and where the floors there had been made of stone, tile, or stucco, these were made mostly of tatami, with wood in certain places. 

“It’s a bit traditional,” Obito said, scratching at the back of his head. “But it’s got lots of space, and it’s pretty quiet out here.” 

Naruto kicked off his shoes and raced over the tatami, whooping as his socks slid along the floor. “This is awesome!” 

“At least put on the slippers first,” Kakashi sighed, setting a pair of bright orange slippers down. Naruto slid over to him, and put on the slippers with only some reluctance. 

“All right!” Obito cheered. “Who’s ready to see Naruto’s room?” 

“Me!” Naruto said. “Which way is it? I bet I can find it myself!” 

“Oh, dear,” he heard Kakashi sigh as he raced away. “There’s two of you.” 

The first room seemed to be Narumi’s study, as it was lined with bookshelves and filled with scrolls, brushes, and ink. Naruto closed that door and moved on. The next door opened to the bath, the second to the toilet, the third to a wood-floored bedroom filled with all of Narumi’s boring, adult things. The one across from that, however, led to a slightly smaller bedroom holding a bed with an orange and blue bedspread, a bookshelf filled with a mix of children’s books, history books, and books on the ninja arts. 

Naruto flung open the closet at the back of the room, which was filled with a variety of clothes, more than he’d had in Uzushio, even. The few articles of clothing he’d brought with him were stowed among them. He paused, briefly, over a pair of dark blue shorts, rubbing it between his fingers to feel the reinforced material, and let out another shout as he spotted real, actual ninja fishnet armor! A few reinforced shirts went along with these, mostly in shades of blue, with the Uzumaki spiral sewn on the back in thread either slightly darker or lighter than the shirt fabric, so that it wasn’t noticeable unless you looked at it from the right angle. 

He flung himself on the bed and ran his fingers over the frame, marveling at the rough texture. 

“Kakashi made that. Cool, huh?” Obito said. 

“Kakashi-nii made it? How? Did he cut down a tree?” Naruto asked. 

Obito laughed. “Kakashi cut down a tree? I’d pay money to see that. No, nothing like that. Come on outside and he can show you.” 

Naruto trotted along beside him as Obito headed to the back of the house, hollering. “Kakashi! Naruto wants to see you do your thing!” 

Kakashi appeared beside them in an instant. “It’s a small house, Obito, you don’t have to yell,” he said patiently. “And must I?” 

“Yes,” Obito said firmly, and snatched Kakashi by the elbow as if worried he would scurry away. He opened the door to the veranda and pushed Kakashi forward. Naruto squeezed past him and raced into the wide, open yard. 

“Fine, fine,” Kakashi sighed, and positioned his hands into a seal.

“Ooh, make him a treehouse! Every kid needs a treehouse,” Obito said. 

Kakashi sighed. “Fine. Out of the way, Naruto.” 

Naruto ran back to Obito’s side, while Kakashi walked into the center of the yard, eyes closed, hands in the same seal. Naruto watched him for a minute before leaning in to ask Obito what he was doing and when he’d get on with the technique, only for Kakashi to open his eye and declare, loudly and clearly, “Mokuton!” 

Gnarled branches burst from the ground, twining together to form the trunk of the tree, and then spreading out and sprouting leaves at the top. The tree grew and grew as Naruto gaped, and he eventually noticed an odd shape forming at the center of the tree as the branches twined together, as if they were forming a cube with holes in it. A room, he realized after a moment, and the holes were the doors and windows. 

“A treehouse!” he shrieked as Kakashi dropped the seal and the tree finally stopped growing. He raced forward and scrambled up the tree, easily finding footholds between the entwined branches. “Nii-san, you’re the best! How’d you do that? Wasn’t that the thing the Shodaime Hokage could do?” 

“Oh, my,” a new voice said, sounding wryly amused. “A treehouse already? And here I haven’t even seen the main house yet.” 

Naruto stuck his head out the window and grinned down at the three adults gathered below. “Ji-chan, look at what Kakashi-nii made me!” 

He held back a laugh as Narumi ruffled Kakashi’s already rumpled hair, while the jounin simply stood there as if nothing at all was happening. “Thanks for keeping an eye on him, you two. Come over for dinner sometime, you hear?” 

Kakashi, already turned to leave, waved a hand. “Yes, yes.” 

Obito waved cheerfully as he followed Kakashi towards the forest. “See you later, Naruto! Narumi, let’s train together sometime!” 

“Go play with people your own age,” Narumi called after them. “How’s the house, Naruto?” 

“It’s great, Ji-chan! Except there’s like no water, anywhere,” Naruto complained as he scrambled down the tree. 

“Did you like Kakashi and Obito?” Narumi asked. 

Naruto grinned up at Narumi as he reached his side, and grabbed hold of his hand as they walked back to the house. “Kakashi-nii is super cool! He was like, ‘Mokuton!’ and then the tree was like ‘woosh!’ I want a mokuton!” 

He pouted when Narumi only laughed. “Don’t we all.” 

“How’d you know them, ji-chan?” he asked curiously. “They said they knew you, but I’ve never met them.” 

His uncle hummed. “We met years ago, before you were born. Actually, I met Sakumo before Kakashi was even born,” he mused. “We fought in the third war together, and their sensei was the Yondaime.” 

“You mean—!” Naruto clapped his hands over his mouth at Narumi’s stern glance, and looked up at him sheepishly. “Sorry. But really?” 

“Yep,” Narumi said. “They’ve been waiting to meet you for a long time. So has Rin, their other teammate, but I understand she’s in the middle of work right now. You’ll meet her once she’s not on call, I think. How do you like your room?” 

“It’s great!” he cheered, releasing Narumi’s hand to slide over the tatami floors in his socks. “This stuff is great, too!” 

Naruto shrieked with laughter as Narumi slid by and grabbed him, swinging him around in circles until Narumi nearly fell over. “Come on, let’s get our things unpacked and see what Kakashi and Obito did to the place,” Narumi said, settling Naruto down once their laughter had quieted. “I’ll show you around town once we’re done.” 

Naruto whooped and raced off down the halls to his room, only realizing once he slid through his door that he’d forgotten his things. 

“Looking for this?” Narumi said. 

Naruto sheepishly accepted the scrolls Narumi handed him and spread them out on the floor, releasing his belongings from them one by one. Before long, the room was filled with the clutter he’d collected over the years, from his collection of seashells to his sets of kunai and shuriken to the goodbye card his friends had given him. He paused, however, at the last scroll—he didn’t remember packing three scrolls, only two. 

“Go on,” Narumi said, from the doorway. “It’s yours.” 

Naruto channeled chakra through the seal, releasing its contents in a faint puff of smoke. When the smoke cleared, a black backpack sat on the ground, along with new school supplies and a set of weapons. 

“Kunai and shuriken? Ji-chan, I already have a bunch,” he said. 

“Not like this. That’s a jounin-grade pouch there. It’ll hold a lot more, and last a lot longer,” Narumi said. Naruto opened it curiously and peered at the shiny weapons inside. “Careful with that. Those are live.” 

Naruto yanked his hand away, but his shock quickly turned to glee. “Really? I get actual live weapons!” 

“Only if you promise to be careful with them, and not use them in school,” Narumi warned. “You can train with them here.” 

Naruto jumped up and threw his arms around him. “Ji-chan, you’re the best! This almost makes up for having to go back to the beginning of school again.” 

Narumi laughed and ruffled his hair. “I’m sure you’ll survive. You’re a smart kid, just like your parents, and you’ll make lots of friends here.” 

“You really think so, Ji-chan?” Naruto asked. 

“I really do.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of you may have noticed, but this is now a series! I'm going to post some shorts that aren't super important to the main plot, so you can skip them if you want, but if you want to know a little more about the characters, you can check them out! 
> 
> If anyone was curious about why Tsunade went to Uzushio a chapter or two ago, there's one posted right now that explains what went on there.


	24. Chapter 24

A door shouldn’t have been imposing, but for some reason, as Naruto stood in front of the door leading to his new classroom, he couldn’t help but shiver and hold onto Narumi’s hand a little tighter. 

His uncle smiled down at him. “Want me to come in with you?” he asked. 

Naruto shook his head quickly. “No, that’s lame,” he said. “I can do it.” 

Narumi ruffled his hair. “Go on and knock ‘em dead, kiddo,” he said, and let go of Naruto’s hand. Naruto took one last breath, and then opened the door.

The room was already full of children, most of them talking to each other while the teacher took roll. He looked up as Naruto entered, and smiled. “Okay, class, settle down!” he called, “We have a new student joining us today. Why don’t you go ahead and introduce yourself?” 

He beckoned Naruto over to stand beside him, at the front of the classroom. 

“I’m Naruto Uzumaki, from Uzushio! Nice to meet you,” he said. 

“We’re glad to have you here, Naruto. I’m Iruka Umino, and I’ll be your teacher for the rest of your time at the academy. Take a seat wherever you like,” he said, with a broad gesture towards the classroom. 

Naruto took a quick glance around. So far, the room seemed to be divided into girls and boys, although there were fewer girls. There was an empty seat in the rows the girls had claimed, and another one in the very back, next to one boy who was eating potato chips and another who was already fast asleep. The only other seat was in the very front, at the row just in front of the teacher’s desk. A boy—or maybe a girl?—with fluffy white hair was sitting next to the window, and a boy with spiky black hair sat next to him, but the aisle seat was free. Naruto sat there and pulled out his books while Iruka prepared the lesson, occasionally shooting curious glances over at the other two. 

The one right next to him looked a lot like the rest of the people he’d seen around the village, the ones with black hair and eyes and the fans on their back. The Uchiha, he remembered from what Narumi had told him. He couldn’t see the boy’s back from this position, but he suspected that he’d find a fan there, if he looked. The other boy was smaller, small enough that Naruto suspected he might actually be a girl, even if he wasn’t sitting with the girls. His hair was pretty long, too, falling down to brush against his shoulders. 

He turned and smiled at Naruto. His eyes were black, just like the other boy’s, although other than that they looked nothing alike. “I’m Minori Hatake,” the boy said, stretching a hand behind the boy in between them. Naruto shook his hand quickly, as the position was rather uncomfortable to hold. “You met my parents yesterday. I would’ve gone to meet you then, but Daddy said to give you time to settle in first.” 

Naruto blinked at him, and realized why he’d seemed so familiar. “Oh! Kakashi-nii didn’t say he had a kid.” 

Minori laughed. “Daddy always forgets stuff like that! He was probably too excited to remember.” 

Naruto blinked for a few moments, because excited hadn’t exactly been the vibe he’d gotten from Kakashi. Obito, maybe. “He was?” 

“Mhm. Papa, too, and Jii-chan and Ba-chan and everyone,” Minori said. “And me! I hope we can be friends.” 

Naruto grinned. Not even the first five minutes of class, and he already had a friend. “Yeah, me too!” 

Iruka cleared his throat, and the two of them jerked back to attention. “While I’m glad to see my students forming bonds, it’s time to begin class.” 

“Sorry, sensei,” the two of them chorused, sharing sheepish grins with each other. 

“I’ll let it slide for now, but pay attention. Now, who can tell me anything about the shinobi codes?” 

Class was just as boring as Naruto had expected. Iruka was teaching things he’d learned about when he was five and actually attending academy for the first time, and he actually still remembered most of it. It was small consolation that both of the boys next to him seemed a bit bored as well. Lunch, when it came, was a relief, especially when Iruka informed them that practical lessons would take place after lunch. Even if he knew how to do everything already, practical lessons wouldn’t be boring. 

The moment Iruka announced their hour break for lunch, the students poured out of the classroom and into the yard. Minori waited for Naruto, clutching his bento to his chest. “Come on, I know a good spot to sit,” he said, heading for the door the moment Naruto had his lunch in hand. “It’s a really good spot, so we have to hurry or someone else will take it! Come on, over here!” 

‘Over here’ turned out to be a large, shady tree with a swing. Minori plopped down on the grass and patted the spot beside him. Naruto joined him, and the two of them set out their bento boxes on the ground. Minori’s was blue, with a series of dogs marching across it, while Naruto’s was orange and decorated with toads. Narumi had laughed when he’d seen it, for some reason, and insisted on buying it. 

“On three!” Minori declared, taking hold of the lid. Naruto hastily copied him. “One, two, three!” 

They revealed their lunches, and quickly set about seeing what they’d been given and what the other had been given. Narumi had made him little sausages cut up like octopus, along with rice and vegetables. Minori’s was similar, except that his parents had packed him fish, and his rice had the picture of a dog on it. 

“Whoa, cool!” he said, peering down at it. “Ji-chan never does that for me!” 

Minori puffed up proudly. “Papa is the best at bento,” he said. “He makes Daddy’s, too.” 

Naruto paused, sausage midway to his mouth, and realized exactly why Minori’s eyes seemed so familiar. “Oh!” he exclaimed, dropping his sausage back into his lunch. “Obito-nii is your dad too?” 

“Yeah!” Minori said, nodding proudly. “I have two dads, instead of a mom.”

“That’s so cool,” Naruto said. “I’ve never met anyone with two dads before.” 

“I have, and some people with two moms, but not anyone my age,” Minori said. “Trade you a sausage for some of my fish?” 

“Done,” Naruto said, eagerly making the exchange. “Oh, man, this fish is almost as good as the stuff in Uzushio!” 

“It’s imported from Uzushio, I think,” Minori said. “Daddy calls it Uzushio fish.” 

Naruto bit his lip. “You think they’d tell Ji-chan where to buy it?” 

“I’ll ask,” Minori assured him. “Do you like bean sprouts? Papa always gives them to me because Daddy likes them, and he forgets that I don’t.” 

“Trade you my tomatoes,” Naruto suggested. 

They traded throughout lunch, bargaining over the things they liked the most and eagerly getting rid of the things they liked least. It was almost like lunch with Karin, except that she got a lot grumpier when he refused to give her something, and Minori just pouted a bit and then laughed it off. His smiles were a lot like Obito’s, cheerful and frequent, and Naruto couldn’t help but relax over the course of lunch. 

The butterflies in his stomach reappeared, however, the moment Iruka called them back together and led them to a training ground. 

“This is the beginner training ground,” he said, gesturing to the training dummies and targets. “You and the class above you use this training ground, while the upper two classes use the advanced training ground. You’re only allowed to use the beginner training ground right now, because the advanced training ground uses live weapons, understand?” He waited until they all chorused their agreement before continuing. “Now, all the weapons you use here will be dull, but they can still cut you if you aren’t careful. You should treat every weapon you use here as if it were a live weapon. Does everyone remember the safety training?” Once again, a chorus of agreement. “Okay, four or five to a target, kunai to start. Once you throw ten kunai, raise your hand, and Mizuki-sensei or I will come grade you. Start!” 

Minori and Naruto quickly peeled off to one of the targets, the one on the side. Here, they’d be less likely to be interrupted by wayward kunai, as they only had one side to look out for. The boy who sat next to them seemed to have had the same idea, as he joined them, as did a girl with pink hair and a boy with sunglasses. The pink hair made him grin—it was almost like being home!

Minori was first in line. He threw his kunai with a practiced ease that said his parents probably taught him—a probably that went up to definitely when they all hit mostly in the center of the target. “Sensei!” he called once he was done. Iruka came over in a moment, congratulated Minori on a job well done, and then rushed off to the next student. Minori, beaming, skipped to the back of the line, where he struck up a conversation with the pink-haired girl. 

Naruto’s first hit was too high up. He eyed the target, and realized after a moment that it was closer than he was used too—he didn’t have to compensate as much for the distance. His next nine strikes were much better, although not as good as Minori’s, hitting mainly in the center with only a couple hitting the next ring. 

“Very good, Naruto,” Iruka said, marking down his score. Naruto beamed and joined up with Minori. The boy who sat next to them went next, and did just a little worse than Naruto. He looked a little upset about it, and didn’t say anything to them when he went to stand at the back of the line. Naruto did learn his name was Sasuke, at least, so he must’ve been the boy Narumi told him about. Still, Naruto didn’t know how to start a conversation without mentioning that, especially considering how he didn’t talk to Minori at all. 

“What’s his deal?” he whispered to Minori. 

“He’s not allowed to talk to me,” Minori whispered back. 

Naruto, sensing a story, opened his mouth to ask, but Minori shook his head. Instead, he watched the pink-haired girl, who was decent but clearly inexperienced with kunai. “Who’s she?” he asked Minori.

“Um, Haruno, I think?” he said. “A civilian family. She’s pretty good for a civilian, actually. Look over there.” 

Naruto followed Minori’s eyes to a larger, brown-haired girl, who had missed four of her shots and only barely made the others. She threw one as he watched, and he couldn’t help but wince at her grip. At least the pink-haired girl was using a proper grip with her kunai. 

“Very good, Sakura,” Iruka praised when he came by. “You’re improving already. Just keep practicing, and you’ll be hitting the center without fail in no time.” 

The girl flushed and scampered off to the back of the line, her face hidden by her hair. The civilian girl with the brown hair glowered at her retreating back. Even Naruto shivered at the look on her face. 

“What’s up with her?” he asked. 

Minori glanced over at the girl. “Jealousy, probably,” he said. 

Her final kunai went wide, sailing off into the bushes, and the rest weren’t much better. “Keep at it, Ami,” Iruka said as he graded her. “You’ll get there.” 

The glare she shot towards Sakura once Iruka left made both of them shiver. “Girls are scary,” Naruto muttered. Minori nodded his agreement, and glanced across the training field. Naruto tried to follow his gaze, but couldn’t quite figure out who he had been looking at. 

Once the last of them had gone—Naruto somehow managed to miss watching the boy with the sunglasses—Iruka rounded them all up, and led them over to a different part of the training ground. This area had a series of fighting rings marked on the ground, which another class was using. Iruka led them past the other class, over to a large area of dirt. 

“Line up in four rows, with at least a meter between you and the person next to you,” he ordered. “We’ll be going over the basic Academy kata. I know some of you no doubt have personal or family styles, but even so I need you to stick to the basic kata for now.” 

The two of them headed to the first row, and ended up between the middle and one of the ends, with a clear view of Iruka. Naruto automatically fell into the kata they’d used at the academy in Uzushio, and only realized Iruka was doing it differently when he heard a few people behind him snicker. Ears burning, Naruto hastily corrected himself, doing his best to copy Iruka’s stance. Mizuki adjusted his foot, but otherwise he seemed to have gotten it right. 

Once Mizuki had adjusted everyone, and they were satisfied, Iruka nodded firmly. “Alright, for today, we’re going to practice blocking. Everyone watch me!” 

Unlike class, physical lessons were tiring. He kept defaulting to the things he’d learned in Uzushio, which made the boys behind him snicker at him, even though Mizuki corrected them just as often. He had to actually concentrate to learn Konoha’s forms, which was more tiring than he’d expected, and he was relieved when Iruka led them through the cooldown exercises. 

“Remember, at the end of the month we’ll start sparring, so work hard!” he said. 

Naruto glanced over at Minori, who was easily the smallest of the bunch, but he’d kept up easily during the taijutsu practice and was grinning in excitement at the mention of sparring. Naruto had no doubt that anyone who tried to pick on him for being the shortest would find themselves regretting it shortly. 

They returned to the classroom to fetch their things, and were then dismissed by Iruka with a few final reminders of their first homework assignment, to be due on Monday. The moment they were allowed to leave, there was a mad rush for the door. Being in the front, Minori and Naruto were some of the first people out, only just behind Sasuke and a girl with grey hair. The pink-haired girl, Sakura, was just behind them, but stumbled and was swallowed up by the horde of students eager to get home. Naruto caught a brief glimpse of her talking to the girl who had been bad at shurikenjutsu, Ami, but lost sight of them again as he left the building. 

The yard emptied quickly as the students ran home, leaving only those few who were dedicated to practice and had nowhere else to do so. A group of teachers was standing near the door, and another two were supervising the exit. A familiar figure stood near them, and waved as Naruto spotted him. 

“Ji-chan!” he exclaimed, breaking into a run, Minori hot on his heels. Naruto barreled into Narumi at top speed, but Narumi didn’t so much as flinch. 

“Hello, Naruto,” he said. “And Minori! You’ve grown.”

“Nii-san, can we go?” 

Naruto blinked and looked over, and realized that Narumi must have been talking to someone, because just across from him stood a teenage boy in a chuunin vest and Sasuke. “In a minute, Sasuke,” the boy said. “Narumi-san, our conversation has been . . . interesting.” 

Narumi dipped his head. “As I said, all I ask is that you consider my offer.” He put a hand on Naruto’s head. “My nephew, Naruto, is in your brother’s class. And Minori, of course.” 

Itachi dipped his head towards them. “Kakashi-senpai’s son. He speaks of you frequently.” 

“You know Kakashi-nii?” Naruto interrupted. “He’s the strongest, isn’t he? He’s super fast!” 

“Not true!” Sasuke exclaimed. “Nii-san is the strongest, don’t be stupid. He’s the best!” 

“Yeah, well, I’ve got Kakashi-nii and Obito-nii, and both of them could totally kick your brother’s butt!” 

“Could not! I’ve never even heard of that Obito guy,” Sasuke said. 

“Both Kakashi-senpai and Obito-senpai are very strong shinobi,” Itachi said, putting their argument to rest. “I can only hope to live up to their example.” 

He looked, again, at Minori, who shifted on his feet restlessly. “I gotta go,” he said. “Daddy said he’d train with me. Bye, Naruto, Ji-chan.” 

“We’ll leave soon too, Naruto, but can you take these to the teacher’s office for me?” Narumi held out a small stack of fliers. Naruto glanced over them, and found that they were all requests for a dedicated student interested in learning fuinjutsu. 

“You’re looking for students?” he asked. 

Narumi nodded. “Part of the conditions of being here. I had the option of taking on a genin team, or taking on a couple apprentices instead. I opted for the apprentices.” 

“Sasuke, go help him,” Itachi said. “I have to speak with Narumi-san.” 

Sasuke made a face. “Do I have to?” 

Itachi poked Sasuke’s forehead. “If you help, I’ll train with you.” 

Sasuke perked up immediately, and grabbed half the papers from Naruto. “Come on, let’s go!”

“Hey, wait up!” Naruto hurried to catch up to him, and managed to reach him as they entered the school. 

They walked in silence through the empty halls for a moment, until Naruto said, “Minori said you’re not allowed to talk to him, but are you not allowed to talk to me, too?” 

Sasuke frowned at him, but shook his head. “Father didn’t say anything about you,” he said. 

“Why aren’t you allowed to talk to Minori?” Naruto pressed. 

Sasuke, however, only shrugged. “I don’t know. Father didn’t say. He just got upset when he heard I was sitting next to him in class, and said not to talk to him.” 

“And you didn’t ask?” Naruto asked. He couldn’t imagine not pressing Narumi for more information if he’d said something like that. Not that he did, really. He couldn’t remember a single time Narumi had said not to talk to someone. 

Sasuke looked just as shocked at the idea of asking his father such a thing, however. “Of course not!”

Naruto huffed and adjusted his grip on the papers. “You’re weird.” 

“You’re weirder!” Sasuke said. “You’re pretty good at shuriken and kunai, though.” 

“I would’ve done better, but the target was closer than Ji-chan’s,” Naruto said. 

Sasuke perked up at that. “Me too! Nii-san’s are super far away.” They grinned at each other. 

“You should come over to train,” Sasuke continued. “I like training with Nii-san best, but he’s always too busy.” 

“Minori couldn’t come though, could he?” Naruto asked. 

Sasuke shrugged uncomfortably. “I don’t think so. But you could come when he’s training with his parents or something, doing clan things.” 

It was true that Naruto didn’t really know what Minori did after school, and he did leave without Naruto to train with his parents. “Yeah, okay,” he said. “You’re pretty good at shuriken and kunai too, so it’ll be fun!” 

A teacher opened the door to the teacher’s lounge as they approached. “Oh, Narumi-san’s fliers, thank you,” she said, accepting them. “We’ll pass these out in homeroom tomorrow. Good job, you two.” 

WIth that, she handed them each a candy and sent them on their way. The two of them beamed at each other all the way back to the gate, gleeful in their shared triumph and the rush of sugar. At the gate, Itachi and Narumi were still deep in conversation, but they said their goodbyes as they spotted Sasuke and Naruto, and the two groups went their separate ways. 

“Bye, Sasuke!” Naruto called, waving back at him. 

Narumi smiled down at him. “Good day at school?” 

“Yeah, it was pretty good!” Naruto agreed. “I didn’t know Kakashi-nii had a kid.” 

“Yeah, Minori,” Narumi said, with an odd smile. “I haven’t seen him more than a couple times since he was, uh, born. Haven’t I shown you pictures, Naruto?” 

“Eh, no?” Naruto guessed, scratching his head as he tried to remember. “You show me lots of pictures! I can’t remember them all.” 

Narumi laughed. “I guess I do, don’t I? Still, isn’t it fun you’ll be in the same class?” 

“Yeah,” Naruto agreed. “Why isn’t Sasuke allowed to talk to him?” 

Narumi frowned. “I think that’s something you should ask Obito and Kakashi.” Naruto pouted, but Narumi just smiled and ruffled his hair. “What else happened at school?” 

“Not much. It’s so boring, Ji-chan! I’ve learned it all already,” Naruto whined, even as Narumi laughed at him. Naruto, in the end, couldn’t help but laugh as well. 

***

Dinner was almost always a quiet affair in the Uchiha household. Itachi always ate in silence, and his mother tended to be naturally quiet, so Sasuke felt awkward whenever he was too loud and tended to speak quietly as well as a result. This was even more true when their father was there, eating his food with a scowl that never seemed to leave his face. Sasuke couldn’t really remember the last time he’d seen his father smile, although he had vague ideas of what it would look like, so he must have seen it at some point. Either way, his father’s serious expression and demeanor made starting a conversation even more nerve-wracking, so Sasuke tended to sit there, picking at his food, unless someone spoke to him. 

“How was school, Sasuke?” his mother asked. Even this topic made his father frown, as it had since he’d mentioned that Hatake kid. 

“It was good. There’s a new kid, from Uzushio, I think,” he said. 

His mother paused, for a moment, before resuming her motions. “Oh?” 

“Yeah—I mean, yes. His name is Naruto . . . Uzumaki,” he said, thinking back to when the teacher had introduced him. “He’s pretty good at shurikenjutsu. I invited him over to train with me sometime.” 

His father opened his mouth, likely to say something, but before he could, his mother set down her chopsticks and said, quite firmly. “That’s a lovely idea, Sasuke. Invite him for dinner when you arrange things.” 

His father huffed irritably, but his mother just smiled in that way that meant she wasn’t changing her mind, and he resumed eating. Grateful that he hadn’t been told not to speak to this new friend, too, Sasuke ate his meal with renewed gusto. 

Just as he was about to ask to be dismissed to go train, Itachi set down his chopsticks and stared across the table at their parents in that way that automatically made people in the room want to pay attention to him. “Father, Mother,” he said. “I have been offered an apprenticeship.” 

Their father paused, and then set down his chopsticks as well. “By whom?” 

“Narumi Uzumaki,” Itachi said. 

“The sealmaster,” Fugaku said. Sasuke wasn’t sure if Father was pleased or not, which was strange—he was usually pleased with everything Itachi did or said. Itachi seemed just as impassive as he always did with Father, which wasn’t unusual, but didn’t give Sasuke any clues about what he was thinking, either. 

“Hn,” Fugaku said, with a sharp nod, after a moment of staring. “I served with him during the war. His power rivals the Hokage and the Sannin.” 

“If I choose to apprentice under him, he has asked that I leave ANBU to fully devote myself to my studies,” Itachi said. 

Fugaku’s frown deepened. Sasuke resisted the urge to glance nervously between them. Even he knew that Father had been extremely pleased, even more so than usual when Itachi did something, when Itachi had joined the ANBU and become an ANBU captain. To throw that away . . . 

Mother, however, laid a hand on his arm. “It isn’t unusual,” she said, “for a master to ask their apprentice to devote themselves fully to their craft.” She gave Father one of those looks, the kind that made it seem like a whole conversation was passing between them even if neither said anything. Father didn’t look any happier, though. 

“He has offered to teach me everything he knows about fuinjutsu and more, and to introduce me to many people he knows both in Konoha and Uzushio, and to support me until I reach jounin and beyond,” he said. “Furthermore, I wish to study under Narumi-san.” 

“Fugaku,” Mikoto murmured. “This is good. Think of it, an Uchiha fuinjutsu master . . .” 

“You will devote yourself fully to studying fuinjutsu. I expect you to reach jounin promptly,” Fugaku said, before standing and striding from the room. Itachi’s shoulders relaxed, just slightly. No one else probably noticed, but Sasuke knew Itachi best, even better than Shisui. 

His mother, however, smiled as she left the table, only to return moments later with two cups and a small bottle of sake. “This is a cause for celebration,” she said, pouring two glasses. “To your apprenticeship, Itachi.” The two of them drank, and Mother even let Sasuke have a small sip, even though he had to fight to keep himself from making a face as the drink burned down his throat. “Will he take any other apprentices?” 

“The village wants him to take at least two or three,” Itachi said. “He said that I was the first person he thought of. He believes I would excel with fuinjutsu.” 

“You always did have beautiful calligraphy,” Mikoto sighed. 

“Nii-san, what’s fuinjutsu?” Sasuke asked, finally tired of only having a vague idea of what was going on. 

“Seals,” Itachi explained, “Such as in storage scrolls and exploding tags. Narumi-san is one of the few seal masters in Konoha. Jiraiya the Sannin is also a seal master, but he has been out of the village for some time. Orochimaru also has some skill with them, but is not widely regarded as a master of the art. It is the same with many other jounin in Konoha. True seal masters are quite rare outside of Uzushio.” 

“Where that kid in my class is from?” Sasuke asked. Itachi nodded. Sasuke sighed. “That’s so cool, Nii-san, I bet you’re going to learn a bunch of stuff. School is boring.” 

His mother laughed, and even Itachi smiled a bit, and dinner slowly but surely returned to normal. Father never returned. 

***

Naruto awoke early, unaware of what had startled him from sleep. He blinked blearily at the ceiling, confused for a moment because it was made of wood, not stucco, before he remembered, and shot up in bed. Konoha! And it was the weekend, his first weekend here! 

He rolled out of bed and pulled on his clothes as he ran from the room, towards the front door, and gleefully slammed the front door open as best as one could slam a sliding door. 

A black shirt greeted him. He looked up, and found himself looking up at the boy from yesterday—Itachi, Sasuke’s older brother. “Good morning,” the boy greeted. “Is your uncle home?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Naruto said, rubbing his nose sheepishly. “Come in. Have a seat and stuff. Ji-chan!” 

While Itachi delicately sat on one of the cushions in the sitting room, Narumi shuffled out of his room, half asleep and still wearing his pajamas. “Naruto? It’s so early,” he grumbled, before spotting their guest and blinking a few times. “Itachi?” 

Itachi bowed in greeting. “Narumi-san. I would be grateful if you would take me as your apprentice, if the offer is still open. I will turn in my resignation as soon as details are finalized.” 

“Oh.” Narumi said, scratching at the back of his head. “Sure. Naruto, go put on some tea, will you? Let me just get the papers.” 

Naruto set the kettle on and, assuming that they would take awhile, made himself a sandwich while he waited. Once the kettle was boiling and the tea was steeping, he brought it back into the living room, where Narumi and Itachi were sitting across from each other, pouring over a stack of small papers. Naruto poured tea into the three cups on the table, and settled in to watch. 

“Ji-chan, what’re you doing?” he whispered, as Itachi flipped through the papers, signing occasionally. 

“Itachi is becoming my apprentice,” Narumi said. “Don’t you have sealing practice to do?” 

Naruto stuck out his tongue, but obligingly pulled out his calligraphy set. At this point, he wasn’t so much making seals as he was practicing the components he would need to learn to make more advanced seal arrays of his own. It was boring and tedious, even though he knew it was necessary, and he couldn’t help but sneak peeks at the other two now and then. 

It took them a long time to finish their work, and when it was done, the two of them picked up their cups and drank deeply. “Well then, Itachi, congratulations,” Narumi said. “You’re now my apprentice.” 

Itachi bowed. “Please take care of me, Shishou.” 

“Of course. Now, let me see, I think I have some beginner’s exercises I can set you to . . . Naruto, show him what you’re doing for now, I’ll be right back.” 

Naruto obligingly scooted over to show his work to Itachi. “I’m learning advanced seal components,” he said proudly. “So you can call me senpai.” 

Itachi’s lips quirked up in clear amusement, but nevertheless he nodded. “Of course, Naruto-senpai. I welcome your advice.” 

“You’re gonna be doing beginner seals, which are super easy,” Naruto explained. “Even if you mess one up, it won’t do anything too bad, just maybe catch on fire or explode a little if you’re lucky. Ji-chan says I have to be extra careful, or else I could blow one up, because even Uzumaki make mistakes with seals sometimes, even though we have an affinity. All you gotta have for beginner seals is good calligraphy, and that’s the hardest part. Ji-chan still makes me practice calligraphy.” 

He pulled out a spare sheet of paper, wrote a quick symbol on it, and handed it to Itachi along with his spare brush. “Here, you can practice this one. It’s my favorite, because it’s the symbol for the Uzumaki. It’s the base of a whole bunch of seals, so you’re s’posed to build on it after. We’ve gotta share ink though because I don’t have any extra.” 

Itachi dipped the brush in the ink, examined the symbol for a moment, and then with a single sweep of his hand made a perfect Uzumaki spiral on the page, right next to Naruto’s. “You’re pretty good,” Naruto said grudgingly. “But it takes more than good calligraphy to be a great seal master! You’ve gotta be inventive! Like this, see?” 

He grabbed a spare piece of paper, scribbled down a seal, and slapped it down on Narumi’s cushion. It activated as he pushed his chakra into it, and it disappeared into the cushion. “C’mon, act natural,” he said, elbowing Itachi when he kept staring at the cushion. Itachi quickly returned to his work, if a little bit too diligently, and Naruto returned to his. 

“Naruto’s got you on the seal base already, huh?” Narumi said, as he returned with a scroll. “Here, this is a primer on basic seal components.” Naruto bit his lip as Narumi approached, but couldn’t hold his laughter as Narumi sat down and the cushion let out a loud, long fart. 

“I see Naruto’s been showing you all the things you can do with seals,” Narumi sighed. “That’s a favorite of his.” 

Itachi accepted the primer with a graceful nod, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. “Thank you. Should I come again tomorrow?” 

Narumi hummed thoughtfully. “Tomorrow . . . let’s say weekends are for self-practice, for now. Come again on Monday.” 

***

On Monday, Naruto awoke to a cheerful voice at the door. “Hello! Naruto, Ji-chan, good morning!” 

Sleepily rubbing his eyes, Naruto pulled on the first clothes he grabbed out of the closet and stumbled into the living room, where Narumi, looking just as tired as Naruto felt, was putting eggs and toast on a plate. Minori, who in contrast seemed far too awake for the early morning, grinned at Naruto around a mouthful of toast. “Morning,” Minori said again.

“Morning,” Naruto mumbled as he sank onto a cushion and helped himself to breakfast. 

“Honestly, Minori, don’t your parents feed you breakfast?” Narumi sighed as he started on a third plate. 

“I wanted to walk to school with Nacchan, but I didn’t know when you were going to leave, so I decided to get here early,” Minori said. 

“N-Nacchan?” Naruto pointed to himself. “You mean me?” 

Minori tilted his head to the side. “Is it no good? Or is Nakkun better?” 

“Eh, Nacchan sounds kind of girly,” Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head. “You can call me Nakkun, I guess.” 

“Daddy calls me Micchan so I assumed,” Minori said. “Hey, Nakkun, wanna race to school?” 

Naruto opened his mouth to agree, before remembering how surprised Obito and Kakashi had been that he’d been able to run up a wall. “Can you walk up walls?” 

“Of course,” Minori huffed. “I’m not a baby!” 

Narumi chuckled. “You two have such skewed perceptions. Go on, before you’re late. Don’t forget your bento. You have yours, Minori?” 

The two of them proudly held up their bento boxes before placing them in their bags. “Alright, stay out of trouble, and listen to your teacher,” Narumi said as he saw them to the door. “And don’t go on the rooftops, you hear? The patrol routes are different here and I don’t need you giving anyone a heart attack!” 

“You’re no fun, Ji-chan,” Naruto whined as they left, followed by Narumi’s laugher. “We’ll have to race later.” 

Minori shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. Come on, I’ll show you a good shortcut!” 

Minori dove into the forest, and Naruto followed hot on his heels. Minori pulled him along, ducking beneath branches and leaping over roots, laughing breathlessly all the while. Even when he tripped or a branch smacked him in the face, he kept right on running. 

“Come on, this way!” 

Minori dove into a patch of shrubbery, and once again, Naruto followed. They crawled through the bushes on their hands and eventually came to a wooden fence. “Shh, this isn’t supposed to be here,” Minori whispered, as he nudged aside one of the wooden slats. It was a tight fit for Naruto, but Minori slipped through easily. The hole let out into a park, but the early hour meant that it was still completely abandoned. 

“C’mon, over here,” Minori said, tugging Naruto out of the park and down a side alley. He clambered up a series of trash cans and pulled himself onto a balcony, and then jumped down the other side onto a totally different street. 

“See,” Minori said, pointing up. “The Hokage’s office is right there, and the Academy is right next to it.” 

Naruto squinted and eventually managed to make out the red dome of the Hokage’s office. “It’s close!” he said, surprised. 

Minori puffed up proudly. “I know the best shortcuts,” he declared. 

Sure enough, the two of them were early enough that the only other people in the classroom were a girl with blank eyes, a girl with grey hair, and the boy with sunglasses, all of whom were sitting in the room in silence. Iruka looked up as they arrived and let out an amused huff. “You two have leaves in your hair,” he said. Minori laughed sheepishly as Iruka approached and brushed them down. “Take more care in your appearance,” he scolded, before ushering them off as Sakura slipped into the room and sat beside the blank-eyed girl. Sasuke walked in not long after, and took his usual seat between Minori and Naruto. 

“My mom said you should come over to my house to train sometime,” Sasuke said. “She said you can stay for dinner.” 

“Cool! Hey, Minori, when’re you busy?” Naruto asked, leaning back to look at Minori from behind Sasuke’s back. “I don’t wanna go on a day when we could be doing stuff, y’know!” 

“I’m only really busy on Wednesdays,” Minori said. “I train every day, but Wednesday is the only day that’s super important.” 

Naruto turned back to Sasuke. “So, Wednesday?” 

“Wednesday is fine,” Sasuke decided after a moment. “Nii-san is always busy on Wednesdays.”

“Alright, everybody, settle down!” Iruka called. “Class is starting. Kiba, I see you trying to sneak out the window, and it won’t work. Shikamaru, wake up, you just got here. Now, everybody put away your books and take out a pen. We’re having a quiz.” 

The homework had been easy stuff about the Hokage and the village, so the quiz was no problem. Naruto finished quickly, and noted that Sasuke and Minori had as well. Sakura finished early as well, he noticed, while Shikamaru didn’t seem to be making an attempt at all. 

The lesson continued in that vein, the same old boring stuff he’d learned before, only adjusted to suit Konoha. He was vibrating in his seat by the time lunch rolled around and he was finally able to escape the classroom with Minori. 

“Sasuke should eat lunch with us,” Naruto said to Minori. “I mean, he can’t talk to you, but he can talk to me, and you can talk to me! It’ll be like playing Courier.” 

“He eats lunch with the other Uchiha kids,” Minori said. “They’d notice if he started eating lunch with me, and they might tell his father, so he’d get in trouble.” 

“Oh,” Naruto said, frowning. “Are there a lot of Uchiha kids? There’s a lot of Uzumaki kids in Uzushio.” 

“There aren’t any in our class other than Sasuke, but there’s four or five in the years above us,” Minori said. “The Uchiha are one of the biggest clans in Konoha. Here, take my bean sprouts again.” 

A boy with a furred hoodie and red marks on his cheeks who Naruto thought was named Kiba bounded up to them. “Yo, Minori! There you are.” 

“Kikkun!” Minori exclaimed. “You aren’t skipping today?” 

Kiba flopped onto the ground, and a puppy popped its face out of his hoodie. “Nah, my mom totally kicked my ass last week. Besides, practical training isn’t so bad. So this is the new guy?” 

“Yep!” Minori said. “His house is right next to mine. I’ve known Kikkun since I was little.” 

“You’re still little, shrimp,” Kiba said, shoving Minori lightly. Minori frowned at him and steadied his lunch. 

“I won’t share my bento with you if you’re going to be mean!” he declared haughtily. 

“Aw, man, don’t be like that. C’mon,” Kiba whined. Minori huffed, but nevertheless offered part of his lunch to Kiba. “Your name’s Naruto, right? I’m Kiba, and this is Akamaru.” 

The puppy in his hoodie barked in agreement. 

“We’re the strongest in class!” Kiba declared. “Just you wait, new guy, you’ll see what’s what when we start sparring.” 

Naruto grinned. “You won’t even have time to see anything—you’ll be too busy eating dirt!” 

Akamaru growled at him, but Kiba was grinning too. 

“We don’t even start sparring for weeks,” Minori said. 

Kiba laughed and jumped up. “Nothing wrong with laying down the law, shrimp. See ya later, I’m gonna go see if I can get Choji to cough up some food. You keep an eye on this weirdo for me, Naruto!” 

Minori sulked as he surveyed his empty bento box. “Kikkun’s so mean. He treats me like a little kid and then he eats all my food.” 

“But you are a little kid,” Naruto blurted, only to falter when Minori looked at him fiercely. “Uh, I mean, we can ambush him after school and make him buy us food?” 

“Yeah!” Minori cheered. “Kiba’s allowance sucks, but we can make him ask his mom for more. She loves me so she’ll definitely say yes.” 

“Where’ll we make him take us? Ramen?” Naruto suggested. "Ooh, or the arcade! I saw an arcade earlier, we didn't have those in Uzushio!" 

Iruka’s call rang through the yard, and they slowly picked themselves up and headed back to the classroom. “We can decide once we get him,” Minori said. “Kiba always goes to the park to play with Akamaru after school so we can get him on the way.” 

“Sounds like a plan,” Naruto said. 

They fell silent as they entered the classroom. Iruka gave them a suspicious look, but didn’t question them. “Okay, class,” he began as the last of them took their seats. “Since this is the first full week of school, from now on on Mondays and Fridays the girls will be having kunoichi classes in the afternoons.” 

The door slid open, and a rather plain woman with black hair and glasses eyes entered the room. “This is your instructor, Suzume-sensei,” Iruka said. 

Suzume stepped up to the front of the class. “Girls, come with me. We’ll be headed out to the yard. Line up outside the classroom.” 

The girls hurried to obey. Suzume scanned the classroom as she turned to go, and paused as she looked at Naruto’s table. “I said all the girls,” she said sternly. “No exceptions, even if your friends are boys.” 

Minori blinked at her in surprise. Suzume’s stern gaze didn’t leave him. Iruka opened his mouth, probably to correct her, but then Minori smiled. “Oh, sorry. I’m coming. Nakkun, wait for me by the school gates, ‘kay?” 

“‘Kay,” Naruto mumbled as Minori slipped from the room on the heels of a blonde girl. 

Suzume surveyed the room one last time before leaving. Naruto blinked after her, and then turned to Sasuke. Sasuke shrugged. 

“Uh, sensei?” Kiba said. “Is Minori allowed to do that?” 

Iruka sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Let’s just get outside and start warm-ups.” 

***

Minori fell into step beside Ino as they followed Suzume out of the school. She looked down at him in surprise. “Um, aren’t you. . .” 

He held up a finger to his lips. “Shh! I’m infiltrating,” he said. “I’m Minori.” 

“Ino,” she said. 

“And you’re Hinata, right?” he said to the girl trailing behind them. 

“Oh, u-um, yes,” she mumbled. “Um, Minori-kun. . .”

“Shh!” he said. “You can call me Minori-chan, since I’m in disguise and all.” 

“You’re not in disguise at all,” Ino said. “You’ll never pass for a girl with your hair looking like that.” 

Minori glanced down at the ends of his hair in surprise. It was light and fluffy, and Obito always wondered over how it got that way when he and Kakashi had wiry and thick hair. “What’s wrong with my hair?” 

“Well, first of all, it looks like you don’t do anything other than run a brush through it every morning,” Ino said critically. Minori decided not to mention that that was exactly what he did. “Do you even use conditioner? The moment Suzume-sensei gets a close look at you, she’s going to realize everything.” 

“Being a girl is harder than I thought,” he said thoughtfully. 

Ino sighed and shook her head. “Well, since you’re so hopeless, I guess I’ve got no choice but to help you out. Walk in front of me and I’ll do your hair.” 

Minori trotted forwards. Ino gathered up his hair, pulling and twisting it behind his head even as they continued to walk forwards. After a few moments, he heard the snap of a rubber band. “Is it done?” he asked. 

“Hang on, it’ll just come undone,” Ino said. “I’ve got a spare bun cover somewhere. . .there. There we go, you actually look presentable now.” 

“Everyone gather around me,” Suzume called. “All of you call out your names. They didn’t give me a roster.” 

They went around the group, introducing themselves. All in all, he estimated that there were fifteen girls, as compared to the thirty boys in the class. The only one he really knew was Heiwa Senju, since he’d known her since they were little. Hinata he had only heard of before; the Hyuuga didn’t like Obito much more than the Uchiha did. Sakura was becoming familiar, since she was one of the best civilian students, and he smiled at her when she introduced herself. She ducked her head and hid behind a curtain of pink hair, but he thought he’d caught a hint of a smile, so he counted it as a success. 

The teacher quickly introduced them to the class and their activity for the day, and then set them up with a variety of flowers and let them loose. Ino fell upon them immediately, snatching up the ones she wanted ruthlessly, and by the time Minori had returned from fetching his was in the middle of putting together a rather elegant arrangement. 

“You’re good at that,” he said. 

“Daddy owns a flower shop,” Ino explained. She glanced over at his. “Those are . . . interesting choices.” 

“They’re all poisonous,” Minori explained happily. “I’ve got a theme going.” 

He glanced around as he adjusted his riotous bundle of color. Ino’s was the best, but Hinata’s was close behind. Heiwa’s, of course, was textbook perfect, although he didn’t miss her disgruntled frown and the book waiting by her side. Some of the civilian girls were pretty good, too. He glanced around, searching for Sakura, but didn’t spot her. Another quick glance revealed that Ami and a few other girls were gone too. 

Minori stood and brushed off stray bits of grass. “Ino, watch my flowers for me, please?” 

“Yeah, okay,” Ino said, still eyeing her own arrangement critically. “Call me if you need backup.” 

Minori wandered towards the area furthest from the teacher where a small group of girls had gathered. As he approached, he caught sight of Sakura on the ground in the middle of the group. Ami towered over her, her foot planted firmly on a pile of flowers. 

“Forehead!” Ami taunted. “Your forehead’s so massive even your stupid hair can’t hide it. You’re going to be ugly forever.” 

Minori looked at Sakura. Nothing looked weird about her to him. “Sakura’s not ugly,” he said. 

Ami whirled around, a scowl on her face. “What do you know?” she snapped. “You’re just a stupid little kid who only got in because you’re related to the Hokage.” 

“Sakura’s not ugly,” he repeated, meeting Sakura’s tear-filled eyes. He brushed past Ami, instead offering Sakura a hand. Sakura sniffled and put her hand in his, allowing him to help her up. 

A hand seized his shoulder, spinning him around and twisting his ankle awkwardly. Ami looked ready to punch him, her fist already pulled back in preparation, her face twisted in anger and humiliation, but before she could do anything a blonde blur flew through the air and latched onto Ami’s back. 

“Go for the eyes, Minori!” Ino shrieked. “Get them, Sakura!” 

Ino and Ami toppled to the ground, but before any of them could react, Suzume stormed over to them. “What in the world is going on here?” 

“Ami was being mean to Sakura!” Minori said. 

Ami scowled at him. “He’s lying! He’s not even a girl, he’s a boy!” 

Suzume squinted at Minori. Ino bit her lip nervously, obviously searching for something to say. Even Sakura looked tempted to say something. 

Suzume opened her mouth to ask a question, and Minori did what he did best, and promptly burst into tears. “Ami’s so mean!” he wailed. Sakura and Ino stared at him with wide eyes, and Ami’s mouth was open in shock. “She makes fun of Sakura all the time! I just wanted to help Sakura!” 

Suzume turned to Ami, a fierce scowl in place. “How could you say such things about your own classmates? Return to your classroom right this minute, young lady. Your homeroom teacher will be having a talk with your parents. Now, now, Minori-chan, don’t cry. I’ll be right back.” 

Ami’s friends drifted away as Suzume escorted Ami back to the classroom. Minori stopped the flow of tears and grinned at Sakura and Ino. “How was that?” he asked. 

Ino laughed. “Brilliant! I didn’t know you had it in you. A masterful performance!” 

“Thanks,” Sakura said shyly, adjusting her hair over her forehead. 

Ino zeroed in on the motion. “And you! You have to stand up for yourself, you know,” she said fiercely. “So what if you’ve got a big forehead? Own your forehead! Come over here.” 

Sakura, eyes wide, stepped closer to Ino. Ino whipped out a red ribbon and used it to tie back Sakura’s hair, keeping it away from her face and exposing her forehead. Minori still didn’t see anything wrong with it, really. “There,” Ino said proudly. “Now we can actually see your face. Come on, you two, class isn’t over yet, and I want to beat Hinata.” 

“I don’t think it’s a competition,” Minori said as he followed her to the back of the class. 

“They never said it wasn’t!” 

Sakura fell into step beside him and glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. “Thanks, Minori,” she said. “For helping me.” 

“It’s no problem! You know what they say, those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash!” he declared. 

Ino snorted with laughter. “Who says that? You’re not a ninja yet, you know.” 

“Jii-chan says it all the time!” Minori said. 

“Now I know you’re lying! Like the Hokage would say something that cheesy and weird,” Ino retorted. 

“He’s super weird!” 

“Is not, he’s the Hokage!” 

“So? He’s an old weirdo who likes to play shogi all day and puts his slippers on the wrong feet!” 

Sakura giggled, then burst into laughter, and after a few moments Ino and Minori joined in. Hinata smiled shyly at them as they returned, and listened patiently as the still-giggling trio tried desperately to explain why they were laughing, to no avail.


	25. Chapter 25

Sakura looked down at the paper in her hands, and then back up at the house in front of her. She was fairly certain that she was in the right place, but it was hard to tell—there weren’t any streets or signs nearby, as the house was situated in the middle of a forest. It had taken her an hour longer than estimated just to find the house.

_ Interested in Fuinjutsu? Speak to Narumi Uzumaki, Seal Master, House in the Woods near Training Ground 11.  _

There were two houses in the woods, but the shinobi she had spoken to on the way had assured her that Narumi Uzumaki lived in this one. 

Sakura took a deep breath and stepped towards the house. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, that was what her mother always said. Maybe Narumi Uzumaki would take one look at her and decide she wasn’t worth teaching, but there was always a chance he would accept her. 

She knocked on the door firmly. 

Mere moments later, footsteps pounded towards the door, which was quickly yanked open to reveal the boy who had joined her class a few days late, Naruto. Sakura stared at him for a moment, surprised. She scolded herself for her surprise internally—they had the same last name, so she really should have expected him to be there. 

“Hey, Sakura!” Naruto said cheerfully. 

“Sakura’s here?” a second voice said, and moments later Minori appeared as well. He gave her a grin and a wave. “Hi, Sakura.” 

“Hi,” Sakura said, once she recovered from the surprise of seeing not one, but two boys from her class. Now she really hoped Narumi Uzumaki didn’t turn her away, or else the boys would tell everyone and she’d end up the laughing stock of the class. “I came about the flier.” 

“Oh, okay,” Naruto said, and turned back into the house. “Ji-chan! Ji-chan, Sakura’s here to talk to you about fuinjutsu lessons!” 

A man with a remarkable resemblance to Naruto appeared in the doorway moments later. “Sakura, was it? Come inside. Naruto, Minori, breakfast is ready. Sakura, have you eaten?” 

“Oh. Yes, I ate at home.” Sakura tentatively walked into the house behind him. Ahead of them, Naruto and Minori shoved at each other playfully as they ran to the breakfast table. 

Naruto and Minori sat across from each other. Sakura hesitated a moment before sitting beside Minori. She didn’t know either of them well, but Minori had been nice to her at kunoichi classes. He smiled at her when she sat down, but that did little to ease the hammering of her heart. 

Narumi handed out breakfast to the boys, and then took a seat across from Sakura. “So, what makes you interested in fuinjutsu?” 

For a moment, Sakura froze—she hadn’t expected to be interviewed. “I—the teacher said that to do fuinjutsu, we would have to have really good handwriting.” She looked at the table, afraid to see what his expression would say. “I’m not . . . really that good at being a ninja, but people always said I had really nice handwriting, and I’m good at learning characters, so I thought . . . maybe I would be good at it.” 

“That’s not true, Sakura!” Minori said. She looked at him in shock—of all people, she hadn’t thought Minori would protest her learning fuinjutsu. Maybe he was a student already and thought she didn’t have what it took? “You’re good at being a ninja! You’re the best out of all the students from civilian families.” 

“But I’m not like you, or Naruto, or . . . most of the kids in class,” Sakura said. “I still miss the target a lot of the time during practice, and I don’t know any jutsu yet, and I’m terrible at taijutsu, and even in kunoichi class there are a lot of people better than me. You’re better than me, and you’re a boy!” 

Privately, she thought it was a little unfair that Minori had such a cute face when he was a boy. She shut her mouth before she accidentally said so—that would have been so mortifying she would have had to leave. 

“I’m just not very talented, I guess,” she finished lamely. 

“How long have you been training, Minori?” Narumi asked. 

The three of them turned to look at him. “Um, since I was really little,” Minori said. “As long as I can remember.” 

“And Naruto?” Narumi asked. 

“A long time! Super long!” Naruto declared. “Since before I—uh, since before I turned five.” 

“Since you were around three or four years old,” Narumi clarified. “You saw the older children walking on the water and insisted on learning. You nearly broke a wall down trying to walk up it.” 

Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Hehe. Whoops.” 

Narumi gave him an amused smile before turning to Sakura with a softer expression. It reminded Sakura of the look her grandparents or her parents gave her. “My point, Sakura, is that talent isn’t the end-all-be-all of being a ninja. Most of your classmates have already spent some time learning from parents and family members. Sure, you have your prodigies and geniuses, who barely have to pick up a kunai before they know exactly what to do with it. But for every natural genius, you have a genius of hard work. Someone who will work hard day in, day out, improving themselves one step at a time until they are just as skilled as the natural geniuses. So, are you willing to work hard?” 

“Yes!” Sakura said. “I promise, I’ll work really hard. I’ll practice every day.” 

Narumi grinned at her, and she couldn’t help but smile back at him. “That’s what I like to hear! Now, you’ll have to give this form to your parents and get their permission. Let me know if they want to meet me, and we’ll arrange to have dinner or something. Since you’re an academy student, I can’t officially make you an apprentice—that will have to wait until you’re at least a genin—but I can still train you. Once you’re a genin, if you still want to, we can officially register you as my apprentice.” 

He placed a paper in front of her. Sakura stared at it. “You mean—that’s it? You aren’t going to test me or anything?” 

“Wasn’t planning on it,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. “I mean, you seem like you’ll work hard.” 

“But I studied so hard!” she protested. 

He snorted. A hot blush rose to her cheeks; if she could have taken the words back, she would have. “You studied? How?” He sounded amused, but not in a mean way, which alleviated her embarrassment a little. At least he wasn’t ridiculing her. 

“Practiced writing characters,” she admitted. In retrospect, it seemed a little silly. She wasn’t sure how fuinjutsu worked, other than that it involved a lot of writing. 

“How about you write your name,” he said, and flipped the paper over. Naruto jumped up and brought over ink and a brush. 

She was a little disappointed she wouldn’t get to put her time memorizing complicated characters to use, but nevertheless dipped the brush in the ink and set it to paper. At least she was well-practiced at writing her name and making it look nice. 

“Wow!” Naruto declared when she was finished. “Your handwriting is really pretty.” 

“Way nicer than mine,” Minori said. 

“Your handwriting looks like a duck stepped in ink,” Naruto said. 

“I think your handwriting might be nicer than mine,” Narumi chuckled. “Give that form to your parents and bring it back to me. Come back on . . . Monday, I think. You can meet my other student.” 

Naruto’s hand shot into the air. “Like me! I’m another student!” 

Sakura looked at Minori, who was slurping down a bowl of miso soup. “Um, are you . . . ?” 

“I live next door,” Minori said. “Nakkun and I are going to train together later.” 

“Yeah!” Naruto cheered. “You wanna come too, Sakura? We’re gonna practice the academy taijutsu. ‘Cause I’m used to the style they use in Uzushio, but we get graded on doing the Konoha academy style, y’know.” 

“I don’t like to use the academy style either,” Minori said cheerfully. “Daddy says it’s better for me to use a style that utilizes my smaller size.” 

“If you’re sure,” Sakura said hesitantly. The boys seemed to like her so far—she didn’t want to change that by spending too much time with them. She might annoy them, or they’d see how bad she was at taijutsu and change their minds about wanting to train with her. She reached up to adjust her bangs, only to end up awkwardly brushing her hand against her bare forehead. She kept forgetting about Ino’s ribbon. 

“Yeah, let’s go!” Naruto leapt from his chair and began jumping around Narumi. “Ji-chan! Ji-chan! Help us train!” 

“Okay, okay. But I’m not any better at the academy style, y’know,” Narumi said with a laugh. “You want Kakashi or Gai for that.” 

“Whozzat?” 

“Daddy’s eternal rival,” Minori said. 

“Cool! I want an eternal rival,” Naruto declared. 

Minori wrinkled his nose. “I don’t. He’s weird.” 

Narumi gathered up the dishes as the boys argued over whether having an eternal rival was cool or weird. Personally, Sakura thought it sounded fun, although she couldn’t think of anyone who would possibly want to be her eternal rival. She certainly didn’t want Ami as her eternal rival. 

A tap on her shoulder drew her attention to Narumi. “Sakura, do you want to run home to grab some exercise clothes?” 

Sakura blushed at the realization that she was wearing one of her nicer dresses. She’d wanted to look pretty to impress her potential teacher, but it wasn’t very practical for training. She hoped he didn’t think less of her for not planning ahead. “I don’t want to hold back your training,” she said. “I can come another time.” 

“Don’t worry about it. They can wait until you get back. Or you can borrow some of Naruto’s things,” Narumi said. He rubbed at the back of his head and gave her a sheepish smile. “They’re not very cute though.” 

She wasn’t very cute, so the clothes would match her perfectly. She would have hated wearing Minori’s clothes; he always dressed like he’d just walked out of a magazine advertising clothes for shinobi kids. Naruto looked like he wore more normal clothes, like the civilian children. 

She weighed her options—running home, tiring herself out, and hoping they didn’t leave to train without her, or borrowing a boy’s clothes. “If Naruto doesn’t mind,” she said. 

“He won’t even notice,” Narumi said, and knocked a fist against his head. She giggled, and quickly shot a guilty glance at Naruto. He didn’t seem to have noticed her laughing at him, thankfully, too busy tussling with Minori to pay them any heed. 

Narumi stood with a quiet groan, and gestured for her to follow him. They ended up in a room that she assumed must have been Naruto’s, judging by the clothes in the closet. It was her first time in a boy’s room, and she couldn’t help but look around. It was actually a lot cleaner than she had expected. Naruto’s room was even cleaner than her own. 

“Naruto has to keep his room clean or I won’t teach him any fuinjutsu,” Narumi said. 

Sakura silently prayed that Narumi didn’t work out some sort of chores-related deal with her own parents. 

Narumi rifled through the closet, and eventually emerged with a blue shirt and a pair of grey shorts. “Hope you don’t mind being an honorary Uzumaki,” he chuckled, and she realized the blue shirt had a white spiral on the back. “Bathroom is across the hall.” 

Sakura changed quickly, still a little worried they might leave without her if she took too long. She quickly realized the clothes weren’t exactly what she was used to. The fabric was a little thicker, like it was reinforced, and the shorts had hidden pockets. She immediately thought of about a dozen things she could hide in them. 

“All ready?” Narumi asked as she approached. 

“Ready!” Minori declared, thrusting a hand up in the air. 

“Ready!” Naruto declared, with the same gesture. 

“Ready,” Sakura said. 

The boys raced ahead the moment Narumi opened the door. “Uzumaki-san, is the spiral your clan symbol?” she asked, as she walked beside him. 

“Sure is. There’s a few other Uzumaki in Konoha, and a bunch back in Uzushio. So you can just call me Narumi. Or Shishou, if you like. Or even Ji-chan,” he added with a laugh. 

Sakura blushed at the idea of addressing a teacher so casually. “Shishou,” she said, with only a bit of hesitation. “You’re from Uzushio, right?” 

“That’s right,” he said. “Naruto and I just moved here. I’m here as a diplomat. Official ambassador or something or other.” 

Her mouth fell open. She’d been speaking with someone so important this whole time, without any idea. “I’m sorry!” she squeaked. “You must be really, really busy.” 

Narumi laughed, long and loud. “Don’t worry about it! Training my students is one of my official duties, ya know. And even if it wasn’t, I’m not so busy that I can’t take some time out of my day to teach my nephew and his friends.” 

“Ji-chan!” Naruto hollered from up the street. “You’re slow! Stop holding Sakura back!” 

“My bad, my bad,” Narumi called back, but his pace thankfully didn’t quicken. Sakura didn’t want to tire herself out before they’d even started training. “It’s these old joints. You know what, I think I have to sit down and take a break.” 

“Ji-chan, no!” Naruto wailed. “You’ll never get up again.” 

Naruto ran over and began pulling Narumi along by the hand. “No breaks until after training,” he ordered. 

“Aah, these old bones,” Narumi moaned, as he shot Sakura an exaggerated wink. 

“You’re not old, you’re a spring chicken!” Naruto said. 

Narumi burst out laughing. “Where did you pick that up?” 

“An old lady selling yakiniku said it,” Naruto said. “Now come on!” 

Eventually, they managed to make it to a clearing in the middle of the forest. “Okay, show me your taijutsu,” Narumi declared. 

Sakura stood beside the boys and did her best attempt at the first stance in the academy taijutsu style. She glanced beside her to find Naruto doing something similar, but different, while Minori was doing something even more different. 

“I forget the Konoha style!” Naruto said, as if he were proud of having forgotten. 

“Me too!” Minori said. 

“Well, Sakura’s got it, I think,” Narumi said. “I don’t really know the academy style either, y’know.” 

“What style do you know?” Sakura asked. 

“Eh, calling it a style is a little. . .I kind of always just went for a ‘hit them until they stop hitting back’ kind of thing,” Narumi said. 

“Lame, ji-chan! Super lame!” 

“What? How is that lame?” 

“You gotta give it a cool name at least!” 

“Okay, how about Uzumaki Narumi Barrage!” 

“Bzzt! Still super lame!” 

Sakura tuned out the bickering and focused on her stance. It felt mostly like what Iruka-sensei had shown her, but something wasn’t quite right. Her foot was slightly out of position, or maybe her hand was in the wrong place . . .

A hand landed on her arm, nudging it slightly down and closer to the center. Sakura shrieked and whirled around, her hand reflexively clenching into a fist. 

Her fist landed smack-dab in the middle of the stranger’s hand. She slowly looked up into his face, and nearly flinched at what she saw. One eye, half-lidded, and a hint of scars peeking out from under the headband that covered his other eye. Combined with the mask over the lower half of his face, she had no idea what expression he was making. If he hadn’t been holding her fist, she would have made a run for it then and there. 

“Nice reflexes,” the man said. “Your punch needs work. You’re asking for your thumb to be broken, punching like that.” 

Sakura’s breath caught in her throat as she desperately searched for something to say, only for Minori to chirp, “Daddy! What are you doing here?” 

Sakura gaped at the man.  _ This  _ was Minori’s father? She had expected Minori’s parents to be a lot more cheerful. And better dressed; he looked like he’d rolled out of bed and picked last night’s clothes off the floor. 

The man turned to look at Minori. “Micchan,” he said, his tone mildly scolding. “You didn’t clean your room.” 

“Sorry Daddy, I forgot,” Minori said, not sounding very sorry at all. 

The man’s single visible eye crinkled shut. Sakura thought he might have been smiling, maybe. “Don’t you know all excellent ninja clean their rooms when their parents tell them to, Micchan?” 

“But we’re training!” Minori said. “Don’t you know all excellent ninja train with their friends?” 

The man gave Minori a look that seemed a little skeptical; Sakura thought she might have been getting the hang of deciphering his facial expressions. 

“Good timing, Kakashi. We were just starting. The kids wanted to practice the academy taijutsu. I don’t suppose you could help with that?” Narumi asked. 

Kakashi’s single eye roved over them. Sakura couldn’t help but shiver. “Let’s see it, then,” he said. 

Sakura adopted the first stance again, and beside her the boys did the same. Minori, she noticed, was actually doing the academy taijutsu this time, while Naruto was glancing between them and mimicking what they did. 

“Feet, Micchan,” Kakashi said. 

“Yes, sir!” Minori said, and made some minor adjustment to his footing. 

“Naruto, good start, but you’ve combined the Uzushio style with the Konoha style. More grounded, less like you’re about to twirl off into the beyond,” Kakashi said. 

“That’s so vague, Kakashi-nii,” Naruto groaned, even as he glanced at Minori again and adjusted his stance. 

Kakashi wandered up to Sakura and nudged her feet into place with his own. “Bend your knees,” he said, and then adjusted her hands. “Your strength is at the center of your body; keep your arms closer to you, not out to the side.” 

He stepped back, and then stared them all down. “Passable,” he said, at last. “Next stance.” 

Kakashi ran them through the first ten stances of the academy style, demonstrating the ones the teachers hadn’t taught them yet, and them made them run through the stances three more times for good measure. By the time he was finally satisfied, Sakura’s arms and legs felt like jelly and her borrowed shirt was soaked in sweat. 

Kakashi patted each and every one of them on the head. “Good job, good job.” 

Narumi, who had ended up observing and giving generous encouragement for the entire lesson, walked up. “Hungry?” he asked, to a chorus of hungry groaning from the boys. “I’ll take that as a yes. You’re welcome to come, Sakura.” 

Sakura shook her head. Right now, food was the last thing on her mind—she wanted to take a bath and collapse into bed. “No, thank you. My parents will be wondering where I am.” 

“What a considerate girl. What I wouldn’t give for such a thoughtful child,” Kakashi sighed. He ruffled Minori’s hair, and Minori squealed and darted away. 

“Bye, Sakura!” Naruto said. “I’ll see you at school! Come train with us again next time.” 

“Oh, don’t forget the form,” Narumi said, and handed her the slip of paper from before. “I look forward to seeing you again, Sakura.” 

Sakura could only nod, too overwhelmed with happiness to speak. She’d gone from being the least popular girl in the class to having multiple friends, or at the very least people who were willing to talk to her and train with her, and even had a teacher of her own, one who chose to teach her because he thought she could be good at something, not just because he had to. “See you Monday . . . Shishou.” 

Sakura left the clearing with a grin on her face; she couldn’t wait to tell Ino what she had done. 

***

After lunch, Minori and Kakashi returned to their own house. Narumi cleaned up and set about preparing for dinner. Normally he just cooked for himself and Naruto, so he didn’t have to put too much effort in, but today he would need a lot more food; he knew how much food his friends could pack away, and that was without considering their kids. 

“Ji-chan, whatcha doing?” Naruto peered over the counter curiously. “We just ate lunch. I’m not hungry yet, ya know!” 

“We’re having some friends over for dinner,” Narumi said. He grimaced as he surveyed the spread of ingredients. “We need a lot of food.” 

“Ramen?” Naruto said eagerly. 

“Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow, if you make sure the house is clean,” Narumi said. 

“‘Kay,” Naruto declared, before racing off. A crash resounded through the house moments later. “Don’t worry, I got it!” 

“Don’t break the house too much!” Narumi called back, before turning to the counters with a sigh. 

He stared down at the ingredients. The ingredients stared back at him. 

Narumi drew a kitchen knife and narrowed his eyes. “You’re going down. Believe it.” 

Narumi attacked the ingredients with the same single-minded focus he usually focused on an opponent in battle. He didn’t spare even a glance at the clock as he worked his way through the mountain of food, first preparing the ingredients and then cooking the meals. 

By the time he finally finished, leaving the last of the dishes on the stove to keep warm, he heard a knock on the door. 

“I got it!” Naruto yelled, emerging from wherever he had been sequestered while Narumi cooked. Narumi followed him to the door, taking a moment to remove his apron—a gag gift from Jiraiya that Narumi used more often than he’d like to admit. 

“Come in and take your shoes off and stuff,” Naruto said, as he opened the door. 

Narumi smiled at the new arrivals—Dan, Tsunade, and a girl about Naruto’s age, with grey hair and a serious expression. She was one of the many people he didn’t know from the first time around, although he was familiar with her from pictures and meeting her a few times when she was younger. “Dan, Tsunade, good to see you. And this must be Heiwa.” 

“Got it in one,” Tsunade said, as she slipped off her shoes and walked into the house. 

“Kogane and Nawanuke couldn’t make it?” Narumi asked. Kogane’s absence was understandable, but Narumi really wasn’t sure what other commitments a nine-year-old could have. 

“They’ll be here,” Tsunade said. “Nawanuke ran off again and Kogane is looking for him.” 

“He’s at that age,” Dan said, sympathetically. 

“He’s been at  _ that age _ since he was born,” Tsunade groaned. 

“Hey!” Naruto exclaimed, pointing at Heiwa. “You’re in my class!”

Heiwa held out a hand. “Heiwa Senju. Nice to meet you.” 

“Nice to meet you!” Naruto echoed, as he cheerfully shook her hand up and down. “I’m Naruto Uzumaki, ya know!” 

“I know,” she said. “Hashirama Senju was married to Mito Uzumaki. Our clans are very close, historically speaking.” 

“Cool! Then that means we gotta be friends,” Naruto said. He was still shaking her hand. 

Narumi took a look at Heiwa’s expression, which was beginning to look a bit annoyed, and considered intervening. Thankfully, at that moment there was another knock on the door. “Naruto, could you get that?” he asked. 

“Got it!” Naruto declared, releasing Heiwa’s hand in favor of yanking open the door. 

“Hey, Nakkun!” Minori chirped. 

Narumi bore personal witness to the moment Heiwa’s expression collapsed into long-suffering misery. 

“Hei-tan!” Minori cheered, throwing his arms around the girl. “It’s been forever!” 

“Let go of me. And don’t call me that,” she said. 

“But Hei-tan,” Minori whined.

Kakashi reached down and hoisted Minori into the air by his armpits. “Micchan, let’s not get the bloodshed started so early.” 

“‘Kay, Daddy,” Minori said cheerfully. “Hei-tan, want to play with Nakkun and I?” 

Heiwa glanced towards the kitchen table, where Tsunade was pouring herself a beer, and then back at Minori and Naruto’s cheerful grins, obviously weighing her options. “We could train,” she suggested, at last. 

“Yeah!” Naruto said, thrusting a hand into the air. “Come on, Kakashi-nii made me a really cool treehouse. Race you!” 

He darted off, the other two hot on his heels. 

“Don’t get too carried away, we’re having dinner soon!” Narumi called after them. 

“Ah, let them get their energy out,” Jiraiya said, as he took a sip of his beer. “Kids are more tolerable when they aren’t bundles of energy.” 

“When did you get here?” Narumi asked. 

“The door was open,” Jiraiya said. 

Sure enough, the door was wide open. Narumi decided to leave it; it wasn’t like anyone would break in, and this would save them from having to jump up and get the door. Tsunade had just poured him a beer of his own, and he didn’t feel like abandoning it. 

They’d all finished their first beers by the time Obito ran up. “Sorry I’m late,” he said cheerfully. “You would not believe what just happened while I was walking through the market! Some genin was trying out a wind jutsu, and upended an entire cart of cabbages, and then the kid ran off and I had to chase him down and make him help clean everything up.” 

“You’re not the last one,” Narumi assured him. 

Obito took a seat beside Kakashi and accepted a beer of his own. “Oh, good. Who’re we waiting on? Rin, Shishou, Kogane, Shizune?” 

“No Rin or Shizune,” Kakashi said. “There was an emergency at the hospital.” 

“Then shouldn’t Tsunade be over there, instead of over here drinking beer?” Obito said. 

Tsunade waved a hand. “Shizune and Rin can handle it. I’m not holding their hands for every little procedure. And yeah, we’re still waiting on my brats.” 

“Our children,” Dan said. 

“Same difference.” 

“Yo, Uzumaki! Heard there was free food.” Anko waltzed into the room and took a seat beside Kakashi. Kabuto, just behind her, gave Narumi an apologetic smile. 

Narumi attempted to fit Anko and Kabuto into his dinner plans, and quickly gave up on trying to figure out whether he had made enough to feed everyone plus extras. If he had to, he’d send someone out to grab takeout. “The more the merrier,” he told them. 

“Trust me, you’ll change your tune when mine arrive,” Tsunade snorted. 

With Jiraiya, Dan, Tsunade, Kakashi, Obito, Kabuto, and Anko, it was a tight squeeze, but Kakashi grew them another table so they weren’t sitting on top of each other. They’d only just gotten situated and made sure everyone had a beer when a voice called out, “Hello. May I come in?” 

Narumi’s eyebrows rose. Kogane was much the same as when Narumi had last seen him, if a little taller and broader. In his arms, however, he held a boy who could only be Nawanuke. He was about Naruto’s age, with blond hair the same color as his mother and brother. 

“Yeah, come in,” he said. “Is he okay?” 

“What the fuck happened to him?” Anko asked. 

“He will be fine,” Kogane said, as he carefully removed his shoes and nudged them into place. “He simply suffered a mishap with the Spirit Release. It happens on occasion.” 

“Sometimes his spirit leaves his body,” Tsunade said. She took a sip of her beer and shrugged. “He can’t control it. Cherish the peace while it lasts.” 

Kogane hadn’t taken more than a few steps into the room before Nawanuke blinked. He was still for a few moments, before his position sank in and he let out an unholy screech. 

“Let me go!” Nawanuke flailed until his knee managed to hit Kogane in the face. He dropped, landed on all fours, and raced away only for Tsunade to seize him by the collar. 

“Don’t be a brat. Say hello to Narumi,” she said.

“Let me go, you old hag!” Nawanuke squawked. “I didn’t want to go to this shitty dinner in the first place.” 

Narumi could practically hear Tsunade grinding her teeth. “Who’s a hag, you brat?” 

“Now, Tsunade,” Dan said soothingly. “I’m sure Nawanuke is eager to spend time with his friends.” 

“He’s eager to get some manners taught to him, is what he is.” Tsunade rolled her eyes, but lowered him down. “Go on, you punk.” 

Nawanuke scowled fiercely enough to put an Uchiha to shame before storming out the door. Tsunade sighed and chugged the last of her beer. “That kid.” 

“He’s certainly spirited,” Narumi laughed. 

“Say that again once he’s kicked you in the balls. Like he did to his last two academy teachers,” Tsunade said. “The number of times I have been called to the principal’s office. . .” 

“Excuse me, Narumi, but do you have a first aid kit?” 

Narumi looked over at Kogane, who had his head tipped back and a hand over his nose. A few drops of blood leaked out between his fingers. “Oh, yeah, sorry. Hold on, I’ll grab that and call the kids in for dinner. Sakumo said not to wait up for him—he’ll join us when he can.” 

“Is your mother a medic or not? Get over here and let me fix that,” Tsunade said. 

“You just got off a shift at the hospital. I wouldn’t want you to use too much chakra,” Kogane said. 

“You’re about a million years too young to lecture me on chakra usage, punk. I’ve got plenty to spare, so get over here and let me fix your nose before you ruin that pretty face,” Tsunade said. 

While Kogane made his way to Tsunade, doing his best to avoid dripping blood on the tatami, Narumi went to call the kids in for dinner. He wasn’t sure what he expected, but it certainly wasn’t what he found. 

Minori stood near the treehouse, hands on his hips, cackling at nothing. Narumi assumed that Heiwa and Naruto were meant to be his audience, but the two of them were wrestling on the ground, each of them doing their best to make the other eat dirt. Nawanuke was tied up with rope at the base of the tree, yelling his head off at the other three. 

“Okay!” Narumi clapped his hands together. Minori stopped cackling, thankfully, but the other three ignored him. “Dinner!” 

That was the magic word that got Naruto to stop fighting, although Heiwa got one good hit in while he was distracted. Naruto scrambled up and raced into the house, Minori right behind him and Heiwa following at a more sedate pace. “Clean up first!” Narumi called after them. 

Kogane, nose freshly healed, stepped outside as they went in. “Allow me,” he said, as Narumi pulled out a kunai to cut the ropes. 

Narumi handed him the kunai. Kogane knelt in front of Nawanuke and cut the ropes, then stood and offered Nawanuke a hand up. 

Nawanuke headbutted Kogane in the gut and ran away. Kogane sank to his knees with a groan. 

“You okay there?” Narumi asked. 

“I am . . . fine,” Kogane wheezed. “This was . . . to be expected.” 

Narumi laughed. “He’s an interesting kid, that’s for sure.” 

Kogane took a deep breath and stood. “I must confess, I do not understand him,” he said. “His behavior is beyond the scope of my experience.” 

“I don’t think it needs to be in the scope of your experience or whatever. Just try to understand him. Put yourself in his shoes.” 

Kogane considered this. “His shoes are too small for me to wear.” 

“Just try thinking the way he thinks.” He clapped Kogane on the back. “Now come on, before everyone eats all the food.” 

They returned to the living room. In his absence, Kakashi had made yet another table, which the children were gathered around while the adults took the other two tables. Sakumo had joined them, and he gave Narumi a smile he walked in. “Glad to see you could join us,” Sakumo said as Narumi took the seat next to him. “I see you met Nawanuke and Heiwa.” 

“Briefly,” Narumi said. 

“They’re interesting kids. Heiwa used to lecture me on how I was running the village all wrong,” Sakumo chuckled. 

“And Nawanuke?” 

“The first time we met he threw up on me. That’s defined our relationship ever since,” Sakumo joked, before adding more seriously, “He’s got a bit of an attitude. His jounin-sensei will have an interesting time of it.” 

“That’s an understatement,” Narumi chuckled, as he watched Nawanuke snap at Minori, be scolded by Naruto, and snap at Naruto in response. “Well, he’s got a few years. Maybe he’ll calm down by then.” 

“Maybe,” Sakumo agreed. “How have you and Naruto been settling in? We haven’t had much time to catch up lately. Oh, and the paperwork for Itachi has been processed. He’s officially your apprentice.” 

“Ah, thanks.” Narumi helped himself to some chicken. “I found myself another student. A girl in Naruto’s class, Sakura Haruno. She came by today.” 

“Haruno, Haruno,” Sakumo mumbled. “That’s a civilian family, isn’t it?” 

Narumi shrugged. “I’m not really sure.” 

“No, no, it’s coming back to me. Their symbol is a white circle, isn’t it?” Sakumo said, making a circular motion with his hands. “I can’t remember what they do, but I remember that symbol. It looks just like a target.” 

Narumi snorted and choked on his beer, and Sakumo laughed. “Sorry, sorry. But it’s true!” 

“I never thought about that, but you’re right, it really does,” Narumi laughed. 

Sakumo leaned over and stole a piece of chicken from Narumi’s plate. “Still, that’s good. Two students is a good amount. Three is fine for a jounin-sensei, but when you’re teaching them more specialized things, it really is good to be able to focus and spend more time with just one student. I don’t know anything about Sakura Haruno, but Itachi will definitely keep you on your toes.” 

“I’m surprised you let him join ANBU,” Narumi said, giving him a sidelong glance. 

Sakumo sighed. “I didn’t want to, but both the Uchiha and the council were pushing for it.” He grimaced. “Not that that spells anything good. The council suggested it, but I know Danzo was really behind that idea.” 

Narumi’s hand clenched around his chopsticks briefly before he forced himself to relax. “Danzo, huh?” 

“You’ve probably seen him around,” Sakumo said. “Creepy old guy, friend of the Sandaime, wrapped in about a million bandages but still gives you the feeling that he’d gut you in a dark alley and smile while doing it.” 

“Yeah, I know him. He’s still around?” Narumi asked. 

“Unfortunately. He thinks I’m leading the village to ruin, like most of the elders do,” Sakumo said. “Most of them aren’t dangerous. Danzo is. He’s been quiet lately, and that means trouble.” 

Narumi made a thoughtful noise. It was getting close to the time of the Uchiha Massacre—he’d noticed the tension between the Uchiha and the rest of the village. The Uchiha Police force angry at the ANBU for interfering in what they saw as their jurisdiction, ninja and civilians alike resentful of the police, the Uchiha angry at being isolated from the village in their compound, the villagers distrustful of the Uchiha because they were separate, the rumors about the Uchiha’s involvement in the attack of the Kyuubi . . . the Uchiha were on the brink of rebellion, and Danzo no doubt knew it. He’d gotten to Itachi quickly, but Itachi had likely already told Sakumo, at least, about the coup. And then there was Shisui—another important person. He had to reach out to him, somehow. Maybe through Itachi. 

“There’s something I need to discuss with you,” Sakumo murmured, the noise of the children and other adults hiding his words. 

“I guess you should stay the night, then,” Narumi suggested. 

Sakumo smiled at him, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I guess I should.” 

“No secret conversations!” Jiraiya interrupted, slamming two cups of sake down in front of them. “Eat, drink! The night is young!” 

“Okay, okay.” Narumi laughed and took a sip of the sake. “So, Tsunade, how are things with the medical school? I heard Rin is teaching there, right?” 

The night went on, food and alcohol slowly depleting. The kids fell asleep at around 10, spread out on the tatami so that anyone who went to the front door was in danger of stepping on them. Orochimaru showed up at one point, although Narumi wasn’t sure when because he only noticed him when he was pouring sake and Orochimaru held out his cup for a refill. Not long after he arrived, however, Kogane left to pick Rin up from the hospital and Kabuto left to get some rest before his shift at the hospital. From then, the guests slowly dwindled. Obito and Kakashi took a sleepily protesting Minori back to their house, and Tsunade and Dan roused their children and took them home. Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Anko were the last to leave, caught up in a drinking contest that went into the early hours of the morning, until Jiraiya wandered off to the red light district, Anko left to hunt down some dango, and Orochimaru vanished as quietly as he had appeared. 

Then, it was just Sakumo and Narumi, and Naruto asleep under the table. 

“I don’t know what I’m going to do with all these tables,” Narumi said, as he picked Naruto up and carried him to his bed. 

“Put one of them in the treehouse,” Sakumo suggested. 

“Good idea.” Narumi tucked Naruto under the covers, and smiled as he immediately grabbed his pillow and curled around it. 

He led the way to his bedroom, only to pause as he entered the room. “Ah, I forgot,” he said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. “Kakashi got me a modern bed instead of a futon.”

“It’s a big bed,” Sakumo said. “I don’t mind sharing if you don’t.” 

“As long as you don’t steal the covers,” Narumi said. 

They prepared for bed quickly, Sakumo borrowing some of Narumi’s clothes for the night. Before getting into bed, Narumi went around the room, activating the seals he had painted on the walls. “No one will overhear us now, if they’re listening,” he said as he slipped under the covers, next to Sakumo. 

Sakumo laughed. “That’ll give Danzo some interesting ideas, I’m sure.” 

Narumi laughed too, giving into the absurdity of the situation for a moment before he sobered. “So you think he’s tailing you?” 

“I know he is. I’ve seen his agents around my house.” He grimaced. “His special division of ANBU, ROOT. They give me the creeps.” 

“You let him have his own special division?” Narumi asked—he hadn’t been aware that Sakumo knew about ROOT. 

“Trust me, I’m not happy about it. But I’m not naive enough to think he’d actually do what I said if I told him to disband it. At least this way I can keep an eye on him.” He sighed. “I have ANBU dedicated to keeping an eye on what happens in ROOT. It’s disgusting. But I can’t do anything about it yet.” 

“But this wasn’t what you wanted to talk to me about,” Narumi said. 

“No. But it is related. I’m sure you’ve noticed the tension between the village and the Uchiha?” Narumi nodded in response. “Itachi Uchiha came to me recently, not long before you arrived. The Uchiha are planning a coup. I’m working with him to figure out a peaceful resolution, but I don’t think Danzo will wait long enough for us to act.” 

“You think he’ll try something,” Narumi said. 

“I know he will. He doesn’t think a peaceful solution will last; he thinks the Uchiha will wait until we’ve let our guard down before attacking. Shisui Uchiha, our other agent in the clan, has an ability that will aid us, but Danzo doesn’t trust him to act for the village instead of the clan. I can’t meet with him privately without Danzo knowing, but you might be able to. Warn Shisui that Danzo isn’t to be trusted,” Sakumo said. 

“I can do that,” Narumi said. 

“Be careful. Danzo will do anything if he thinks it’s in the best interests of the village,” Sakumo said. He sighed, face pensive, and turned to stare at the ceiling. “I hate asking you to do this.” 

A burst of fondness for this man, who would do anything for his friends but wouldn’t dream of asking them to do the same, warmed his chest. “Sakumo. You don’t have to do this alone.” 

“I’m the Hokage. This is my responsibility.” 

“Sakumo.” Narumi waited until Sakumo looked at him before continuing. “You might be my Kage, but you’re my friend first. And I won’t let you do this alone.” 

“Quoting Tsubame now? Jiraiya would make fun of you endlessly for that.” Sakumo’s tone was playful, but his expression showed a mixture of relief and fondness. 

“I’m pretty sure Jiraiya still thinks of Tsubame as a pimply teenager, even now,” Narumi said, getting a quiet laugh from Sakumo. “Let’s get some sleep. Or else you’ll be too tired to go to work in the morning, old man.” 

“Says the man with the creaking joints,” Sakumo muttered. “And Narumi . . . thank you. For everything.” 


	26. Chapter 26

On Monday, Itachi arrived at Narumi’s house just before noon, when Naruto was still in school. 

“Good to see you,” Narumi said, gesturing Itachi inside. “Tea?” 

“Please.” 

When Narumi returned from the kitchen, Itachi was seated at the table in the main room, his sealing materials in front of them. Narumi sat across from him, poured tea for both of them, and took a look at the scroll. Itachi’s calligraphy was practically perfect, each character written even more neatly than the ones Narumi had written as an example. 

“I have memorized all of the characters you gave me,” Itachi said. 

“Great,” Narumi said, as he set down the scroll. “I’m curious. Did you use the Sharingan to memorize these?” 

“I did. Is that a problem?” 

Itachi’s face was perfectly placid—it was more than a little eerie to think that he was only thirteen. He posed the question like it meant nothing to him, but Narumi had no doubt that it did. “Not at all. I’d be kind of a hypocrite if it did. I used shadow clones to memorize a bunch of seals during the war. Damn, the Sharingan would’ve been handy . . . but that’s beside the point. I think you’re more than ready to start on some basic seals. So, how do you want to do this? The methodical method, or the experimental method?” 

Itachi considered this for a moment. “What do each of those construe?” 

“Well, with the methodical method, we can go over some seals, deconstruct them, and go over what each component does individually and in combination with other components. Or, we can go with the experimental method, where we throw things together and see what happens, and figure out what works and what doesn’t from that.” 

“The methodical method,” Itachi said after another moment of thought. 

“My brother was the same way,” Narumi said, as he spread out his own sealing materials and prepared the ink. “My nephew and I learn better with experiments—the Uzumaki way. Sit an Uzumaki in front of a textbook and they’d go insane. I might have some books on sealing lying around, if you’re interested.” 

“I would appreciate that.” 

Narumi began to draw a seal. A basic exploding tag, nothing fancy. “That reminds me. I have a potential student who should be arriving once the Academy lets out, if you’d like to meet her. She’s in the same class as Sasuke and Naruto.” 

Itachi nodded, and Narumi grinned at him. “Great! Now, the seal. This is a standard exploding tag, pretty much the same as you can get at any equipment store. Pretty simple, but there’s actually a lot of detail in this little thing. All the user needs to do is channel chakra, and boom, explosion. But for us, there’s a whole lot more. How much chakra does it need? How powerful is the explosion? How much of a time delay is there between the tag being triggered and exploding? With more complicated seals, you can do even more. But for now, let’s just take a look at this guy here . . .” 

Narumi, personally, wasn’t a big fan of the methodical teaching method; it was too boring for his tastes. And teaching Naruto, who was loud and enthusiastic about even the simplest of seals, was much different from teaching Itachi, whose largest show of enthusiasm was activating his Sharingan whenever Narumi did something particularly interesting. Still, the good thing about being the teacher was that he could mix up lecturing with practical demonstrations. And when he got particularly antsy, he could declare it time to spar with seals. 

They had just finished a spare when Naruto ran up to the house, pulling Sakura along by the hand. “Ji-chan! I’m home! And I brought Sakura,” he said. 

Sakura held out the form, bearing the signatures of her parents, like an offering. “My parents gave their permission, but they asked if you could come for dinner sometime?”

“Of course, whenever works for them. My evenings don’t have anything going on for the next few days.” He folded up the paper and put it in his pocket. “I’ll get this processed. Now, Itachi, meet Sakura Haruno. Sakura, Itachi Uchiha.” 

Sakura bowed politely. “Nice to meet you, Uchiha-san.” 

“Nice to meet you,” Itachi replied. “You may call me Itachi-senpai, if we are to be working together.” 

“Then. . . you can call me Sakura,” Sakura said. 

“Sakura-san, then,” Itachi said. 

Narumi chuckled as Sakura blushed faintly; apparently she had a weakness for Uchiha no matter what timeline he was in. 

“Ji-chan, teach us about seals!” Naruto exclaimed. “And make us snacks.” 

Narumi laughed and ruffled his hair. “What’s the magic word?” 

“Please!” 

While the children settled themselves at the table, Narumi returned to the kitchen to prepare a snack. When he returned, Itachi was going over the details of the seal he was working on with Sakura, while Naruto slapped seal components down on a scroll. Itachi and Sakura looked completely entrenched in what they were doing, so Narumi left them to it, keeping half an ear on what they were doing while Naruto eagerly told him all about his attempts to make an exploding tag that produced orange smoke. 

Eventually, Sakura and Itachi finished their discussion. “Thank you for the lesson, Shishou,” Sakura said politely. “I have to go home now.” 

“It was more Itachi than me,” Narumi said. “Here are some basic seal components for you to learn. I’ll go over what they all do once you’ve learned how to write them.” Sakura accepted the scroll he handed over with a determined nod. 

Itachi followed the two of them to the door. “I should be going as well,” he said. 

“Sure, see you again tomorrow,” Narumi said. “Oh, yeah, could you sent your friend Shisui around?” 

Itachi’s gaze sharpened. “When?” 

“When Naruto is at school,” Narumi said. “As soon as possible. Before he next meets with Danzo.” 

Itachi nodded. “I will tell him. Thank you for the lesson, Shishou.” 

The smile fell from Narumi’s face as Itachi left. “Damn. It’s been that long already, huh,” he mumbled to himself. 

He hoped he could save Itachi. He hoped he could save Shisui. He even hoped he could save the other Uchiha, if only for Sasuke’s sake. The boy who had once been his friend and rival, who was now his nephew’s classmate, wouldn’t grow up to be an avenger, not if he had anything to say about it. 

***

On Wednesdays after the academy let out, instead of training with his friends or parents, Minori went to visit Orochimaru’s laboratory. 

“Hi, Kabuto-nii,” Minori greeted, as he entered the office area that preceded the lab itself. 

Kabuto looked up from a thick medical textbook—something about brains, from what Minori could see—with a smile. “Minori, back again. Go on in, Sensei isn’t working on anything too delicate at the moment.” 

Minori entered to find Orochimaru staring at a computer, one of those new ones that could actually sit on a desk instead of taking up a whole room. As Minori entered, Orochimaru looked up and smiled his usual slow smile. Obito always said Orochimaru’s smile was creepy, but for Minori, that smile was one of his earliest memories of the world. 

“Minori,” Orochimaru said in greeting. “Running late, I see.” 

Minori came to a stop beside Orochimaru’s desk. “Sorry, Mama! Naruto and I had to break into the teacher’s lounge to add my name to the roster for the kunoichi classes.” 

Orochimaru sighed, but said nothing; he had long since given up correcting Minori’s term of address for him. Instead, he stood and walked over to the usual lab table. 

Minori hopped up without being asked, and waited as Orochimaru attached a variety of devices to him. “What’re we doing today?” he asked. 

“Testing your chakra levels,” Orochimaru said. 

Minori nodded; they spent most of their time experimenting. Now that Minori was in the academy, Kakashi had agreed to let him participate in Orochimaru’s experiments, so long as Orochimaru discussed them with Kakashi first. 

“Channel your chakra into this,” Orochimaru instructed, as he handed one of the bizarre contraptions he had lying around the lab. 

“‘Kay,” Minori said. He closed his eyes as he focused his chakra on the machine.

“Excellent. Keep going,” Orochimaru instructed. 

After a moment, Orochimaru handed him a different machine, and told him to channel varying levels of chakra into it, to test his control. Minori kept going until he felt slightly drowsy from lack of chakra, at which point he told Orochimaru that he was tired. 

“Drink this,” Orochimaru instructed, holding out a juicebox. 

Minori sipped at the juice while Orochimaru extended Minori’s arm, first to draw some blood from his elbow, then to inject something else. “Venom from the hawk scorpion, from Suna,” Orochimaru said. “Incredibly mild except in very large doses. You are unlikely to develop anything other than a slight headache.” 

Once Minori finished his juice, Orochimaru returned to his desk to examine the data he had gathered. Minori threw out his juice, and stood next to Orochimaru to see what he was working on, grinning to himself when Orochimaru didn’t make him move. “What’re you working on?” 

“I am comparing the data from this appointment to that from previous tests,” Orochimaru said. Minori leaned against the chair as Orochimaru read the data out loud, like he had when Minori was a baby. He had a little bit of a headache, and he was still tired from using so much of his chakra, so he dozed to the sound of Orochimaru’s quiet, rasping voice. 

He woke up when Orochimaru stopped. “Narumi,” Orochimaru said. “What can I do for you?” 

“I finished the lock seals you wanted,” Narumi said. “You’re. Uh. Looking . . . perky.” 

“Do you actually want to know?” Orochimaru asked. 

“Not really,” Narumi said. 

Orochimaru chuckled softly. “Let me tell you that Sakumo is aware of the extent of my experiments, and leave it at that.” 

“Probably for the best,” Narumi agreed hastily. “Anyways. I’ll just set these up. Where do you want the master seal?” 

“Under my desk. Minori, out of the way.” 

Minori stepped back from the desk and took a seat on the lab table to watch as Narumi crouched under the desk and began to carefully paint a seal onto the bottom of the desk. 

“Just add their blood to this, and they’ll be able to get in,” Narumi said, as he wrote. “All you have to do is prick a finger—or anything, I guess—and press it to the middle of the seal. By the way, there was something I wanted to ask you.” 

Orochimaru nodded and reached into his desk, pulling out a snack bar. “Minori. Eat this outside.” 

Minori accepted the snack bar and retreated from the room. The office was empty, Kabuto having left while he was in the lab, so he left the door open just a crack and sat next to it. Technically, he was outside the lab. He just wasn’t outside the building. 

“Has Danzo visited you?” Narumi asked, so quietly Minori had to stop eating in order to hear him. 

“Not since I turned down his last offer,” Orochimaru said. “He has nothing he can offer me.” 

“I know you were angry when Sakumo told you to stop those experiments,” Narumi said. 

“I have a test subject already,” Orochimaru said. “And he said not to experiment with Uchiha genetic material; he didn’t say anything about anyone else’s. Not that I have had a chance to. Tsubame has been consulting me on a rather interesting project, and Sakumo gave me a number of interesting projects to make up for his interference.” 

“I’m glad you turned him down, no matter what the reason,” Narumi said. “I might disagree with you about a lot of things, but you’re still a friend.” 

“How . . . sentimental,” Orochimaru said, with a raspy chuckle. 

“That’s me,” Narumi said cheerfully. 

“I’m curious. Why do you ask?” Orochimaru said. 

Narumi’s voice dropped even lower. Minori leaned forwards to hear better. “I’m sure you know what’s been going on.” 

“Ah yes, that issue,” Orochimaru said. “I assume things will reach a climax soon?” 

“Yeah,” Narumi said. 

“Interesting,” Orochimaru hummed. “I have noticed Danzo’s agents sniffing around more than usual. Sakumo has a plan, I take it?” 

“He does.” 

“Good. I would hate to lose such promising talent,” Orochimaru said. 

“Yeah, Itachi’s a good kid,” Narumi said. “That reminds me. I didn’t know you were so close to Minori. I thought you didn’t really like kids.” 

“Children are loud, obnoxious, and for the most part, useless,” Orochimaru said. “Minori is interesting to observe.” 

Minori grinned; from Orochimaru, that was as close to affection as you got. 

“He looks a little like you,” Narumi noted. 

“Does he?”

“Admit it. He’s got a little bit of you in there,” Narumi said. “I’ve seen your genin team photos.” 

“He certainly didn’t get his looks from either of those buffoons he has for a father,” Orochimaru said. 

“Isn’t one of those buffoons your students?”

“That is irrelevant.” 

“Whatever you say,” Narumi chuckled. 

Feeling his stomach about to rumble, Minori crept away before he could give himself away, grinning at the rush of a successful eavesdropping, but at the same time a little anxious, knowing he’d overheard something so clearly significant. This was one conversation he wouldn’t be sharing with Heiwa. 

***

Narumi wiped the sweat from his brow and looked around his garden with a pleased smile. Several people had given him plants as a homecoming gift—he suspected most of them had asked Sakumo for advice on what to buy. He now had a decent garden with plants both practical and ornamental. It wasn’t anywhere close to the level his garden in Uzushio had been, but it was a start. 

Wind rustled through the garden. 

Narumi blinked, and a boy with black eyes and short, black hair stood in front of him. “Uzumaki-san?” the boy said. “Itachi said you wanted to see me.” 

“Shisui, I assume,” Narumi said, as he set aside his gardening gloves and watering can. “Come inside, I’ll make some tea.” 

Shisui nodded and followed Narumi into the house. As he walked to the kitchen, Narumi activated the seals that prevented eavesdropping. “Sakumo asked me to talk to you,” he said as he prepared the tea. “Danzo isn’t to be trusted.” 

“I don’t trust him,” Shisui said, with a small quirk of the lips. “But I’m prepared for him to turn on me.” 

Naruto poured the tea into the cups and set them on the table. “Are you sure?” 

“Danzo might have been a skilled shinobi, but now he has one eye and one functional arm,” Shisui said. “It may be a difficult fight due to his experience, but if it comes down to it, I can handle him. With my . . . ability, if nothing else.” 

“Maybe,” Narumi said. “But are you sure you could handle both him and his underlings?” 

Shisui hesitated for a moment. “I could escape, at least.” 

“Unless he brings someone capable of countering your shunshin,” Narumi said. 

“Unless he does that,” Shisui agreed. “I have to admit, I don’t know the abilities of everyone in ROOT, much less how many shinobi he has under his command. I know the group exists, but that’s the extent of my knowledge.” 

Shisui frowned into his tea. “Danzo would do anything for power. Nothing is beyond him. But I don’t have many choices. I won’t risk Itachi by asking him to come with me when I meet with Danzo.” 

“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. If you can’t avoid a meeting with Danzo, let me accompany you in secret,” Narumi said. 

“You have a lot of chakra. Are you capable of suppressing it all?” Shisui asked. 

“Seals,” Narumi answered, pulling over a brush and a pot of ink and quickly drawing a seal on his hand. He channeled chakra into it.

Shisui blinked and leaned in. “Wow, I really can’t sense your chakra at all. Useful.” 

“I’ve been making them for ANBU,” Narumi said. He scratched the seal with his nail, breaking it and cancelling the effect. “Trust me, I’ll have no problem hiding my presence.” 

Shisui stared at him seriously. “Are you certain? There’s no guarantee we’ll come back alive . . . and you have people relying on you, don’t you?” 

Narumi grinned at him. “That’s why I’ll definitely come home. I can’t leave my nephew alone, ya know.” 

“Then I won’t say no to some help,” Shisui said. “Against someone as skilled as Danzo, I’ll need it.” 

He bowed deeply. “Thank you, Uzumaki-san, for risking yourself for my family’s problems.” 

“Eh, none of that,” Narumi said, with a nervous chuckle. “Just Narumi is fine.” 

“Thank you, Narumi,” Shisui said. “Danzo and I are meeting tonight at midnight at Naka Bridge.” 

“I’ll be there,” Narumi promised. “Now you should go before Danzo’s subordinates find you here.” 

Shisui left, thanking him once more, and Narumi set about preparing for the meeting that night, making any seals he thought he might need. Itachi arrived not long after Shisui left for his lesson, although they ended up not getting much done on that front, Itachi instead meditating silently while Narumi worked. Itachi stayed until Naruto and Sakura arrived from the academy. Narumi took a break from preparing seals to help Naruto and Sakura with their work, but returned to his work once Sakura had gone home. 

After dinner, he sent Naruto over to Kakashi and Obito’s house for a sleepover with Minori, and kept working until it was time to leave to Naka Bridge. 

Narumi left a shadow clone behind, just in case someone came by, and made his way to the bridge. He left with plenty of time to get settled and lie in waiting for Danzo, and was grateful that he had when three white-masked, black-cloaked figures appeared in front of him as he ran. 

Narumi skidded to a stop and stared them down. “Something tells me you’re not here to welcome me to the village.” 

The three masked shinobi threw shuriken and kunai at him, and he leapt into action, whipping out a storage scroll and sealing the shuriken and kunai in his path, only to unseal them immediately after. They flew at the masked shinobi at the same speed the shinobi had thrown the. The shinobi scattered, two of them vanishing into the darkness while the third darted towards Narumi, tanto drawn. Narumi dodged just enough to avoid the tanto, and slapped a sleep seal against the shinobi. He collapsed to the ground, unconscious. He wouldn’t wake up for the next eight hours without the counter-seal, so Narumi left him there for the moment. 

A dart flew out of the trees. Narumi jumped out of the way and summoned five clones. Three of them ran in the direction of the dart, while Narumi and the other two went in the direction they had last seen the other shinobi. 

One of his clones popped, and Narumi caught a glimpse of bugs flying away. “An Aburame, huh?” He grinned. Ordinary people might have had something to worry about, but he had so much chakra that the bugs couldn’t absorb it all if they tried. He ignored the bugs landing on him in favor of hunting down the shinobi, chakra suppressing seal activated to hide his presence. When he finally tracked him down, the shinobi barely had time to jerk in surprise before Narumi slapped a sleep seal onto him. 

He took a moment to sort through his memories from the other clones. They had managed to trap the other shinobi in a barrier, so he continued towards Naka Bridge.

He ran as fast as he could without drawing attention to himself, hoping he wasn't too late.

At last, Narumi alighted in a tree near the Naka Bridge. He held his breath and peered into the darkness, easily catching sight of the two figures on the bridge. For a moment, everything seemed like it was going well. The ROOT shinobi surrounding the bridge were immobile, trapped in a genjutsu. Danzo, too, was frozen, inches away from Shisui. 

In an instant, that all changed. Danzo surged forwards, hand reaching up towards Shisui’s face. Shisui attempted to counter, but Danzo brushed past him, Shisui’s hands only managing to catch the bandages around Danzo’s face.

Danzo’s fingers extended out, and Narumi moved forward in a flash, scooping up Shisui as he ran. 

“After him!” Danzo barked. 

Narumi threw down an exploding tag as he ran; at this time of night, and this close to the Uchiha district, the noise would summon both ANBU and the Military Police to investigate. A flock of crows further disguised their escape, pecking at the eyes of the ROOT agents through their masks. 

Narumi ran, and didn’t stop until he had left the walls of the village behind. 

Gently, Narumi lowered Shisui to the ground. Shisui’s shoulders trembled under his hands, and his hand was firmly pressed over his eyes. “Shisui? Shisui, look at me,” Narumi said. He cupped Shisui’s face with his hands. “It’s okay, Shisui. Let me see.”

Shisui let out a small, choked-off sob, and slowly removed his hand from his face. One eye stared up at Narumi, Sharingan still activated. The other was empty, blood slowly dripping down from the socket. 

“Kotoamatsukami,” he gasped. “Danzo took it—I have to warn Itachi, with Kotoamatsukami who knows what Danzo will do—!” 

“I’ll warn Itachi,” Narumi said. 

“He’ll come for my other eye,” Shisui continued in a rush. “Narumi, you have to go, he’ll kill you—leave me here and warn Itachi.” 

“I’m doing no such thing,” Narumi said. He held Shisui’s shoulders tightly. “Shisui. Listen to me. I am not leaving you here. Itachi will be fine.” 

“I’ll be fine,” Shisui said. “Take—take Kotoamatsukami to Itachi. I can lead Danzo away from you so he doesn’t come after you. You have to tell Itachi that Danzo has stolen Sharingan.” 

“And I will,” Narumi assured him. “I’ll send a clone to warn him right now. But I’m not taking your eye, and I am not leaving you.” 

Before Shisui could protest, Narumi picked him up again. He summoned a clone, which ran towards Konoha with a determined nod. Narumi turned and ran on, away from Konoha. 

Shisui shook in his arms. “Where . . . where are we going?” 

“Uzushio,” Narumi said. 

“Uzushio? That’s a three day journey! We can’t go to Uzushio, who knows what Danzo will do,” Shisui said. 

“Watch me,” Narumi said grimly, and put on a burst of speed. 

He was no Shunshin no Shisui; he didn’t have the chakra control necessary for that level of speed. But he had chakra and stamina to spare, and he could run nonstop for hours. Shisui, eventually, gave up protesting and curled up against Narumi’s chest, worryingly silent. 

Forest turned to sandy beaches and ocean, which turned into torrential whirlpools. His legs ached beyond all belief, but he kept going towards the islands in the distance. He didn’t stop until he was leaping through the window of Tsubame’s bedroom.

Tsubame leapt out of bed, sword in hand, as his wife jerked up and grabbed a knife from under the pillow. 

They stared at each other for a heartbeat, and then Tsubame lowered the sword. “Narumi,” he said, and his eyes landed on Shisui. “You want this out of the hospital records, I take it?” 

“One of the Konoha elders is after him,” Narumi said. “His eye was plucked out.” 

“Lay him on the bed,” Tsubame said, already walking to his desk, where his sealing materials were spread out. “I’ll see what I can do.” 

Narumi lay Shisui out on the bed. He looked small, laying there, and Narumi was suddenly reminded that although he was an elite shinobi, he was only sixteen years old. 

Tsubame dipped his brush in the ink and began to write directly on Shisui’s skin, drawing a circular seal around his eye. “You’re lucky. I made quite a study of eyes after Isuzu’s injury. This removal, unlike his, is a clean one. Fingers, I assume?” 

“Yeah,” Narumi agreed. “He’ll be okay, right?” 

“Physically, yes. Rest, Narumi. I will take care of him.” 

Narumi sank down beside the bed, and pulled up his knees to rest his arms and head on them. “Fuck,” he breathed. 

He listened, to a moment, for Shisui’s shallow, quiet breathing, counting each hitch in his breath. 

After what felt like minutes, but could have been hours or even seconds, Tsubame set down his brush and pressed his fingers against the seal. “I’m disinfecting the wound and healing the socket. I can’t do anything about the eye itself at the moment. If we were at the hospital, I might have been able to find an implant, but I would want to discuss that with him first.” 

Tsubame stepped back, and knelt in front of Narumi. “Narumi. He will be fine. I will ensure it.” 

After a moment, Narumi managed a smile. “Thanks. You’re a good friend, Tsubame.” 

Tsubame gave him a sharp smile, and offered a hand. Narumi grasped it with his own hand, and Tsubame hauled him to his feet. “I’ll give you food and soldier pills. I assume you have to return as soon as possible.” 

“Yeah. And Shisui—don’t let anyone know he’s here. I think we managed to get here undetected, but Danzo might send his subordinates after the other eye.” 

Tsubame’s hand settled on his sword. “I would like to see them try.” 

Narumi looked at Shisui. His eyes were closed, and silent tears streaked down his cheek. “Give me a moment?” 

“Of course, Take all the time you need; I will gather what you need for your trip back.” 

Narumi sat on the side of the bed. Shisui took a deep breath. “Narumi . . . thank you.” 

“Thank me when I’ve gotten your other eye back from Danzo,” Narumi said. Shisui let out a sharp, broken laugh. “Hey, don’t laugh yet! I could do it, ya know.” 

Shisui opened his eye and attempted a smile. “I didn’t mean for that. I meant for Itachi.” 

“I’ll help him,” Narumi promised. “I won’t let Danzo use him.” 

Shisui’s eye slipped closed again. “I’m sorry, Itachi . . .” he murmured. “I couldn’t . . . bring peace for you.” 

Narumi smoothed his hair back and gently removed his forehead protector. “Rest, Shisui,” he said. “It’ll be okay.” 

He stayed there, gently stroking Shisui’s hair, until Shishui’s breathing evened out. Only then did he quietly slip from the room, activating the barrier seals as he did. Tsubame waited outside the door. “I will stay with him,” he promised, as he handed Narumi a small pouch of rations and soldier pills. “No one will touch him.” 

Narumi wolfed down a ration bar, swallowed a soldier pill, and clapped Tsubame on the shoulder. “You’re the best,” he said. 

Tsubame smiled. “Next time you come to visit, please don’t bring emergencies to my doorstep.” 

Narumi waved over his shoulder as he broke into a jog. “No promises!” 

By the time he reached the edge of the village, he was full-on sprinting. His legs burned, and he was half-convinced he would just collapse the moment he arrived at the gates of Konoha, but he didn’t dare take a break. At the rate he was running, he would arrive just as the academy was getting out of session. Hopefully, Itachi was at the house with Narumi’s clone. 

He entered the village the way he had left, avoiding the guards posted at the gate and along the wall. He ran directly to his house, and collapsed in the middle of the living room, gasping for breath. 

It took him a moment to realize the room was silent, and empty but for his clone. “What happened?” he asked immediately. 

“Itachi never showed up,” the clone said. “He didn’t send a message saying a mission came up, either. What’s going on, boss?” 

“Shisui is safe in Uzushio. Tsubame is looking after him,” he said. “Dammit! Where the hell is Itachi?” 

“Could be a clan meeting,” the clone said. 

“Could be Danzo,” Narumi said grimly. 

For now, there was no telling where Itachi was. The only thing he could do was wait.

***

Minori, Naruto, and Sakura had barely walked through Naruto’s front door before all three of them were ushered out the door by Narumi, who was rambling something about dangerous fuinjutsu. 

“Go to Kakashi and Obito,” Narumi said, before closing the door. 

Minori stared at the door curiously. “We sure are having a lot of sleepovers, huh, Nakkun?” 

Naruto shrugged. “Karin and me had tons of sleepovers when Ji-chan was doing experiments in Uzushio. We lived super far from the main village just in case something really bad happened.” 

“Should I . . . go home?” Sakura asked tentatively. 

“No way, Sacchan!” Minori declared. “We’re gonna go to my house and Papa will make us snacks.” 

“Um, Sacchan?” Sakura asked. 

“Don’t worry about it,” Naruto said. 

Minori grabbed both of their hands so they couldn’t escape, and pulled them along through the forest. They emerged, breathless and laughing, in front of his house and tumbled through the doorway. 

“Papa!” Minori called as he kicked off his shoes. “Papa, my friends and I want snacks, please.” 

Obito emerged from the back of the house. “Hey, Naruto! And who’s this?” 

“Sakura Haruno. Thank you for having me,” she said. 

“Ji-chan said he was still doing experiments so we came over here,” Naruto said. 

Obito frowned. “He did, huh?”

“Yeah, he looked super busy,” Minori said. 

Obito ran a hand through his hair, looking unusually tense for a moment before he gave them all a sunny grin. “Well, I’m actually running late for a meeting with Sakumo, so how about we all go to the Senju’s house?” 

Minori grinned at the thought; he hadn’t spent much time with Heiwa since they’d started the Academy, and his parents weren’t so worried about leaving him alone during the day. Obito was definitely worried about something, but maybe Heiwa would know what was going on. 

“All right, let’s go!” Obito cheered. “Shoes on, everybody.” 

The three of them scrambled to put their shoes back on, and then followed Obito out the door. He led them through the village, towards where Heiwa lived, only occasionally getting distracted by old ladies who needed help with their groceries. 

They made it to Heiwa’s house in record time, by Minori’s reckoning—only half an hour, instead of their usual hour and a half when Obito was taking him. 

Obito knocked, and moments later was nearly bowled off his feet when Nawanuke slammed the door open and stormed outside. “Watch it,” he snapped at Sakura, who shrank away. 

Dan appeared in the doorway, sighing and shaking his head even as he smiled fondly at Nawanuke’s retreating back. “Come back for dinner!” he called. “Anyways, Obito! I wasn’t expecting to see you today.” 

“Yeah, something came up with Sakumo. Mind watching the kids for me?” 

“Of course,” Dan agreed, before looking down and blinking in surprise. “There are a couple more than usual today.” 

“Yeah, sorry. I would’ve called ahead, but you know . . .” 

“Still no phone lines out there?” Dan asked sympathetically. 

“Nope. Well, maybe it’s for the best. It’s like Kakashi says. One minute they’re installing a phone, the next Ibiki Morino is yelling at you to get your ass to the Jounin Office at three in the morning.” 

Sakura’s eyes widened. Naruto snickered. Dan coughed. “Papa, that’s a bad word!” Minori scolded. 

“Whoops.” Obito laughed sheepishly. “Uh, don’t tell Kakashi.” 

“Swear jar! Swear jar!” Minori chanted. 

“Let’s not bring up the swear jar,” Obito said as he ushered Minori inside. “Enough standing around outside, go find Heiwa.” 

Obito stayed outside for a moment, talking quietly to Dan. Minori strained his ears, hoping for an interesting tidbit to bring back to Heiwa, but only managed to hear something about roots near the house before Dan stepped outside and shut the front door. 

Minori turned to face the living room, and immediately spotted Heiwa on the couch. “Hei-tan!” he cheered as he ran forwards. 

He thought about giving her a running hug—she always made the funniest faces when he did that—but decided against it when he spotted the heavy book in her lap. Instead, he jumped on the couch and settled next to her. “Whatcha reading?” 

“One of the Nidaime’s journals on his administration methods,” Heiwa said. 

He leaned over to peer at it. “Sounds interesting,” he said. Heiwa always knew where to find the best books; they had a bunch of weird things hidden away in the Senju compound that no one ever looked at. 

Sakura hesitantly sat next to Heiwa and looked at the book. “I’ve never seen anything like this at the library,” she said, as her eyes roved over the page. 

“I found it in the attic,” Heiwa said. 

“Hei-tan has lots of cool books,” Minori said 

Naruto poked his head over the back of the couch so he could see as well, and wrinkled up his nose. “That’s a lot of complicated kanji,” he said. 

Heiwa gave him a disparaging look. “They aren’t that complicated.” 

Naruto frowned at her. 

“They’re super complicated!” Minori interrupted, before either of them could start fighting. “Look at that one! It’s got so many lines. Hei-tan, what’s that one say?” 

“Antidisestablishmentarianism,” she said. 

“Super-duper complicated!” he declared. “Come on, come on, let’s play!”

Heiwa sighed and rolled her eyes, but she put the book aside, so he counted it as a win. “What do you want to play?” 

“Let’s build a fort!” The door opened and closed, and he turned towards Dan. “Ji-chan, can we build a fort in the living room?” 

“I don’t see why not,” Dan said. “Sakura, if you want to call home and tell your parents where you are, you’re welcome to use our telephone.” 

“Thank you.” 

While Sakura talked to her parents on the phone, Dan helped them take the pillow cushions and all the chairs and construct a fort large enough to hold all of them with room to spare. They positioned the chairs and pillows around the couch to form the walls of the fort, and finished it by draping blankets over the top. The four of them gathered inside the fort, supplied with snacks, books, and games that Dan had gathered for them. 

As Sakura looked through the books and Naruto examined the games, Minori scooted over until he was right next to Heiwa. 

“Heiwa, do you think the adults have been acting weird lately?”

Heiwa looked thoughtful. “I’m not sure. What do you mean?” 

“I don’t know, just . . . weird.” 

“Okay,” Dan said cheerfully, as he poked his head under the blankets. “Let’s make this fort extra defensible!” 

“Ooh, I know!” Naruto declared. “Barrier seals! I know a bunch, ‘cause Ji-chan taught ‘em to me just in case.” 

“Great! Let’s apply some barrier seals to the fort.” Dan said. 

Minori looked at Heiwa to see her opinion on this latest development; in his experience, blanket forts never involved barrier seals. “That was a little weird,” Heiwa said. 

Naruto began making barrier seals, explaining them to Sakura as he went. Dan left, but could be heard moving around just outside the fort. Minori and Heiwa exchanged glances, and then peeked out from under the blankets to watch as Dan puttered around the living room, stringing up ninja wire and sticking seals to every entrance. 

“Definitely weird,” Heiwa said. 

Minori chewed on his lip. “Hei-tan, do you think something bad is going to happen?” 

“Possibly,” Heiwa said. “Father seems worried. We should stay in the fort, just in case.” 

Minori pasted on a cheerful grin. “Don’t worry, Hei-tan! It’ll be okay, for sure.” 

Heiwa frowned, and slipped out of the fort. She returned moments later with her weapons pouch, which she tucked out of sight under the couch. “Just in case.” 


	27. Chapter 27

Narumi’s first visitor after sending the kids away was Sakumo. “Please tell me you know where Shisui Uchiha is,” he said the moment Narumi opened the door. 

“He’s safe,” Narumi said.

Sakumo looked ready to collapse with relief. “That is the best news I’ve heard all day. Signs of a struggle were found on Naka bridge early this morning, Shisui was nowhere to be found. The Uchiha are furious. I’ve spent the entire day meeting with Fugaku and the elders, trying to persuade them to not jump off the deep end.” 

Sakumo sighed deeply, and then gathered himself up. “What happened?” 

“Shisui met with Danzo last night. I was planning to accompany him, but I was held up by ROOT agents. Best guess is they weren’t trying to kill me, just delay me long enough that I couldn’t interfere,” Narumi said. “I took care of them and made it to the bridge in time to see Danzo attack Shisui. I took Shisui and escaped, but not before Danzo stole his eye. And that’s not all. He had at least one other Sharingan.” 

Sakumo ran a hand over his face. “He stole Sharingan? More than once? Forget all the months of planning and attempting to mitigate this disaster—if the Uchiha find out about this, they really will revolt. And now that Danzo has Shisui’s eye there’s no telling what he’ll try to do with it. Have you spoken to Itachi?” 

“I haven’t seen him.” 

Sakumo frowned. “Hopefully Danzo hasn’t gotten his hands on him. If he returns, let me know. I have to go speak with the Uchiha.” 

“Let them know Shisui is in Uzushio, being treated by the Uzukage personally,” Narumi said. “Now go do your thing, Hokage-sama.”

Sakumo left as quickly as he had arrived, leaving Narumi alone once again. He hated waiting; that was always the worst part. Knowing something was about to happen, but not being able to do anything about it. He sharpened his kunai and shuriken for lack of anything else to do, and when he ran out of weapons, organized and reorganized his desk endlessly. He even resorted to cleaning his room. 

By the time the sun set, the house was cleaner than it had been since he moved in. This effect was quickly ruined by a swirl of leaves as Itachi used shunshin to arrive right in the middle of his living room. He was hunched over, and for a moment Narumi thought he was injured, until he caught sight of Sasuke, held in Itachi’s arms. Sasuke was either asleep or unconscious—Narumi wasn’t sure which. 

“Shisou,” Itachi said, his usual calm tone tinged with desperation. “The Uchiha are planning to go through with the coup. They refuse to believe either me or the Hokage that Shisui is alive—they believe that I killed him, and that we are covering up his death to pacify them. Danzo summoned me—the coup will end in too much death and suffering, the Uchiha have to be stopped—if I don’t do as he says, then Sasuke . . . Sasuke will be killed with the rest of the Uchiha. If I kill the Uchiha, Danzo will ensure Sasuke’s safety. Danzo turned on Shisui; I can’t trust him not to kill Sasuke the moment I am gone. Shishou, please, will you protect Sasuke?” 

Narumi knelt in front of him and put a hand on his shoulder. “Of course I will,” he said. “He’ll be safe here while you and I go to the Hokage.” 

“Hokage-sama? But why? You can’t be thinking of contesting his orders,” Itachi said. 

“Trust me, Itachi. Sakumo didn’t order this massacre. Even if your clan is planning to rebel, the death of dozens of innocent people is no solution.” 

“If the Uchiha rebel, there will be a civil war. The other villages would take the opportunity to attack. It would mean war.” 

“There are other ways to prevent a civil war than the slaughter of innocent men, women, and children.” Narumi stood, and then pulled Itachi to his feet. “Come on. We’ll put Sasuke in Naruto’s room; there are so many seals, Danzo couldn’t hope to breach all of them.” 

Itachi tucked Sasuke into Naruto’s bed while Narumi activated all the seals. Naruto’s room was easily the most well-defended room in the house, so there were quite a few seals lining the walls and entrances. Once activated, the room was almost impossible to get into unless the seals were deactivated from the inside or by Narumi. 

Once the room was protected well-enough for Itachi’s satisfaction—although Narumi could tell he was still worried—they left immediately for the Hokage’s office, where Sakumo would no doubt be despite the late hour. 

When they arrived, Sakumo was staring pensively into the distance. He stood so quickly that his chair fell over when they entered. “Narumi! You found him. Itachi, what has the clan told you?” 

“Nothing. They don’t trust me anymore,” he said. “I spoke with Danzo—he told me you had ordered the death of the clan.” 

“The death of—well, I can’t deny arresting the leaders of the revolt was brought up as a potential solution, and the council has been baying for blood,” Sakumo said. “But I certainly haven’t ordered anything.” 

Itachi closed his eyes. His shoulders slumped almost imperceptibly. “I see.” 

“I have to admit, I’m surprised he didn’t use Shisui’s eye on you,” Sakumo said. 

Itachi shook his head. “He would not want to do so unless it was truly necessary; Shisui’s eye can be used only rarely. Danzo already had sufficient leverage over me in the form of Sasuke.” 

“I have been forced to put up with Danzo’s organization. With his recruitment efforts. With his missions on Konoha’s behalf. But stealing clan techniques, attacking Konoha shinobi, usurping the authority of the Hokage, planning the murder of a founding clan . . . even the council can’t dismiss that.” Sakumo made a hand motion, and an ANBU appeared in the room. “Boar, summon Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha.” 

Narumi suspected Fugaku and Mikoto had used shunshin to get there, given how quickly they arrived, even though they didn’t have a single hair out of place. 

“Have you decided to come clean?” Fugaku demanded as he stormed through the door. Narumi didn’t know Mikoto well—she’d been on Kushina’s genin team, had been the woman’s best friend, but he hadn’t seen her since she was a young girl. Her eyes were colder than he remembered. 

“I am ordering the arrest of Danzo Shimura and the dissolution of the ROOT organization,” Sakumo said calmly, as if he didn’t have an enraged Uchiha staring him down. “He attacked Shisui, and stole his eye and the eyes of other members of your clan.” 

Fugaku slammed his hands on the desk. “You allowed this to happen,” he snarled. 

Sakumo closed his eyes for a moment—Narumi could practically see his guilt weighing him down. For not taking action, no matter how much it enraged the council, for not keeping a closer eye on Danzo’s activities. “I did,” he said. “And now I am putting a stop to it.” 

Fugaku looked ready to start yelling and throwing jutsu, but Mikoto spoke up before he could. “Hokage-sama. Where is Shisui?” 

“In Uzushio, recovering, as I said before,” Sakumo said. Mikoto stared into his eyes, and then nodded. “If that’s all, I suggest you gather what you need and return here as soon as possible. We must not give Danzo time to realize what we are about to do.” 

Fugaku and Mikoto left as quickly as they appeared; both Itachi and Narumi were fully kitted out, and remained as Sakumo summoned his ANBU and other trusted shinobi. 

When the chaos in the office finally settled, Mikoto and Fugaku had returned, and they had been joined by Kakashi, Obito, Tsunade, and Orochimaru. Five ANBU had joined them as well; Narumi was pretty sure that one of them was Kogane Senju. 

“Orochimaru,” Sakumo began. “You have worked with ROOT in the past. What can we expect?” 

“Danzo holds his cards close to his chest,” Orochimaru said. “Even I do not know the exact number of operatives he has under his command. At least twice as many as we have gathered here, all trained to follow his orders without hesitation.” 

“Danzo himself has stolen an unknown number of Sharingan, and has used it to evade defeat at least once.” Sakumo looked at the Uchiha in the room. “I suspect you know what he used?” 

“A forbidden technique,” Fugaku said. “A genjutsu that allows the user to reject reality and avoid the consequences of their actions.” 

“It will allow him to avoid injuries and even death,” Mikoto said. “However, it is limited. It lasts for only a certain amount of time, and can only be used once before the Sharingan is destroyed.” 

“So we just kill him until he’s dead!” Obito declared cheerfully. 

Fugaku glared at Obito as if he were attempting to light him on fire with his eyes alone. 

Sakumo cleared his throat. “Fugaku, Mikoto, Itachi, Obito, Kakashi. You will join me in confronting Danzo. The rest of you will focus on subduing ROOT. Do not kill them if you can avoid it. Regardless of how Danzo has trained them, they are loyal Konoha shinobi. Now, let’s move.” 

The entrance to the ROOT base was towards the outskirts of the village, away from the hustle and bustle of the busier areas of the village. The base itself consisted of a series of underground rooms and tunnels. 

The moment they entered, they were surrounded by ROOT agents in white masks and black cloaks. Some of them were noticeably shorter than others. “Children,” Sakumo said grimly. “Danzo has been hiding more than I thought.” 

Mikoto’s sharingan gleamed, and several of the approaching children halted, caught in her genjutsu. “I will remain behind here.” 

“Itachi, remain behind as well. Orochimaru, Tsunade, with me,” Sakumo said. 

The group separated, Sakumo leading his group further into the base. A few ROOT shinobi split off from the group and attempted to follow, but Narumi slapped down a barrier seal, preventing their advance. He grinned at their blank masks. “I don’t think so.” 

He barely had time to summon his clones before they launched their assault, eager to get through him so they could take down the barrier. He stuck to non-lethal attacks, knocking them out with his fists and his seals whenever he got the chance. Occasionally, his clones managed to set up a barrier and trap two or three at a time. Itachi and Mikoto, with their sharingan, were rather more successful. ROOT shinobi who were careless enough to meet their eyes quickly found themselves stuck in a genjutsu, and those who were more skilled at avoiding eye-contact fell to their other techniques. 

With the ANBU aiding them, they quickly had all the ROOT shinobi who had attacked them disabled. Narumi dismantled the barrier, and they moved on. The bulk of Danzo’s force had met them at the door, but there were a few groups on the floor, already taken care of by Sakumo’s group. The majority of them were alive, but the casualties increased as they made their way deeper into the base; no doubt these shinobi were Danzo’s most skilled and loyal agents, the ones who wouldn’t even think twice about attacking the Hokage if Danzo ordered it. 

They burst into a large, central room to find a fight in full swing. Several ROOT agents were wrapped up in branches, courtesy of Kakashi’s Mokuton. Kakashi himself was engaged with the remaining agents. Kakashi used his Mokuton sparingly, most likely to avoid wasting chakra, but occasionally a branch would burst out of the ground and grab a shinobi by the leg. Orochimaru and Tsunade were fighting side by side against another group of ROOT agents, Orochimaru with his sword and Tsunade with her fists. That left Fugaku, Obito, and Sakumo facing off against Danzo. One of Fugaku’s eyes was a milky white, a sign that he too had used one of the Uchiha’s forbidden techniques while fighting Danzo, but he was still engaging Danzo with blasts of flame and shuriken. Obito darted around the fight, teleporting from place to place and getting shots in wherever he could. Sakumo had his tanto drawn, ready to leap into the fight the moment he saw an opening. Two of his wolves stood at his side, but the third lay on the ground. 

The ANBU joined the fight against the ROOT agents, while Mikoto, Itachi, and Narumi engaged Danzo. 

Danzo saw them coming, and his mouth tightened into a thin line. He flashed forwards, towards Sakumo. Sakumo faltered, just for an instant. Obito leapt in front of him, ready to defend him against Danzo’s attack. Obito blew out flames, and for a moment Danzo burned, only to disappear and reappear in front of Fugaku. His blade sank into Fugaku’s gut, and Mikoto screamed in rage. She ran forward, Itachi right behind her. 

Narumi followed, only for Sakumo to step in front of him, sadness and regret visible in every line of his face. “Narumi,” he said. “How could you betray Konoha like this?” 

“Snap out of it, Sakumo,” Narumi said, even as he drew a kunai. “You’re under a genjutsu.” 

Sakumo closed his eyes tightly and then opened them. “I won’t be deceived by you again.” 

Narumi grinned fiercely. “Then I guess I’ll just have to beat you out of it.” 

They flew forward, Narumi’s kunai clashing against Sakumo’s tanto. Sakumo’s wolves shrank away from the fight, obviously unwilling to engage Narumi but equally unwilling to fight Sakumo or allow him to be hurt. Narumi readied a seal, waiting for a chance to knock Sakumo out, but found himself too busy dodging and blocking Sakumo’s attacks to even consider a counter attack. He leapt back, buying himself just enough time to summon a trio of clones before Sakumo was upon him again. One of them was dispelled immediately, throwing itself on Sakumo’s blade to block his vision with the cloud of smoke that accompanied its death. Narumi had just a moment to catch his breath before Sakumo came at him again, tanto moving so quickly Narumi could barely see it. 

He managed to get close enough to apply the seal three times, only for Sakumo to substitute with one of Narumi’s clones each time. Narumi summoned more, four this time, and substituted himself with one of the kunai the clones were using. One clone attacked Sakumo with a kunai, followed by another. Both of them were dispelled within a few moments. The third went for a different method, attacking from behind as Sakumo was distracted fighting the second. It managed to nick Sakumo’s arm while Sakumo was still busy with the second clone, but was dispelled soon after. 

The fourth darted forwards, bearing Narumi disguised as a kunai. The kunai slid against Sakumo’s tanto, and Narumi reversed the transformation. Sakumo’s eyes widened, and he tried to counter, but Narumi was too close. He slapped a seal against Sakumo’s forehead and activated it in the same instant. Sakumo dropped to the ground, unconscious. 

Ran padded to Sakumo’s side and curled around him protectively. “I will keep him safe,” she growled, as Jun joined her. 

Narumi nodded, and surveyed the other battle. Kakashi was securing the downed ROOT agents with the help of the ANBU. Mikoto was dead or unconscious, slumped over Fugaku’s body. Tsunade was healing Obito, who was lying on the ground in a pool of blood. The rest of them were still going strong, including Danzo. As Narumi watched, Orochimaru dashed forward with his sword. Danzo vanished and reappeared behind Orochimaru as the sword sank into his gut, but Orochimaru was ready, a smaller water dragon flying at Danzo. Danzo countered with a jutsu of his own, but missed. He released a burst of chakra—disrupting a genjutsu, likely Itachi’s handiwork—and attacked with vigor once again. 

Itachi ran at him with his own tanto, engaged him for a few brief moments, and then seamlessly substituted with Orochimaru. They kept this up for a few minutes, forcing Danzo to continuously adapt to a sudden change in opponent, until once again Danzo stumbled. Orochimaru’s sword sank into his gut and emerged out the other side. 

They stood there, frozen. Danzo’s eyes widened. 

“I have disrupted your sense of time,” Itachi said. “You can no longer use Izanagi.” 

Orochimaru sneered and withdrew the sword. “It’s over, Danzo,” he said. “Your research is mine.” 

Danzo stumbled back. “Not yet,” he hissed, and disappeared again. 

He reappeared between Orochimaru and Itachi, hand extended to apply a paralysis seal to both of them. Itachi moved, stabbing forwards with his tanto, and managed to pierce Danzo’s chest just as Danzo applied the seal. 

This time, Danzo didn’t disappear. His final eye—Shisui’s eye—was a milky white. Blood seeped from his mouth, and Narumi knew he didn’t have long left. He summoned a group of clones, ready to take up the fight. 

Danzo met Narumi’s eyes with his one good eye. “You are far too young to defeat me,” he sneered, and pulled his robe open, exposing a seal on his chest. 

Narumi swore and ran forward. Sasuke had warned him about this technique, in the previous timeline, and he knew that at this distance, Itachi, Orochimaru, Obito, Tsunade, and Mikoto, and Fugaku would all be destroyed. He didn’t know if he could get all of them out, but he had to try. 

“Reverse Four—” Danzo choked. 

The tip of a sword appeared through his stomach. 

Danzo sank to the ground, and Shisui grinned at Narumi. A black eyepatch covered the eye he had lost. “Hey, everybody,” he said. “Did you miss me?” 

Itachi stumbled as the paralysis suddenly ended. “Shisui,” he gasped. “You’re alive.” 

“Alive and in mostly one piece,” Shisui agreed. He looked down at Danzo. “I don’t suppose that’s my eye in his face, is it? Figures.” 

Tsunade groaned and stood. “That’s him sorted,” she said, with a nod at Obito. “Anybody else?” 

“Mother and Father,” Itachi said. 

“Sakumo got hit by a genjutsu. I couldn’t get him to snap out of it,” Narumi said. 

“Kotoamatsukami. Well, we can’t have our Hokage being subject to whatever Danzo did to him,” Shisui said. He stepped forwards, Mangekyo activated, and knelt next to Sakumo. 

“It should be safe to wake him up,” he said after a moment. 

Narumi canceled the seal. Moments later, Sakumo groaned and sat up, rubbing at his head. “What on earth . . . Narumi!” He seized Narumi’s shoulders. “Are you alright? I’m so sorry.” 

“I’m fine,” Narumi said. “Calm down, old man. It’ll take more than that to bring me down, ya know.” 

Kakashi joined them. “The ANBU are securing the site with Orochimaru’s assistance,” he said. “Tsunade is taking care of the wounded. What are we to do with Danzo’s agents?” 

“Bring in T&I,” Sakumo said. “We’ll need to see what help they need before they can be integrated back into the village.” 

“And the children?” 

Sakumo sighed. “Have Inoichi Yamanaka deal with them. He has experience with children.” 

Kakashi nodded, and went to Obito’s side. Obito grinned woozily and said something. Kakashi replied, too quietly for Narumi to hear, and Obito wrapped an arm around his shoulders. The two left moments later. 

Sakumo stood, only slightly unsteady on his feet, and went to Tsunade, who was still hovering over the fallen Uchiha. “Fugaku is dead,” she said, as she sat back. “Mikoto is fine, just a blow to the head. A little rest in the hospital and she’ll be fine.” 

Itachi nodded and relaxed slightly. “Come on, Itachi,” Shisui said, as he got one of Mikoto’s arms around his shoulders. “Help me out here.” 

Itachi went to Mikoto’s other side, and the two of them left as well. 

Tsunade looked around the room. “What a fucking mess,” she sighed, as she went up to a fallen ANBU. 

Already, more ANBU were entering the base, securing the ROOT agents and taking them away. One of them took Fugaku’s body, and another took Danzo’s. 

“Well,” Sakumo said, with a sigh. “At least that’s one less council member to deal with.” 

Narumi snorted. “Maybe the others will drop dead of shock when they hear.” 

“If only,” Sakumo said. “I have to head back to the office . . . I don’t even want to think about the paperwork this little incident is going to generate. And I think you have someone to get home to, don’t you?” 

“Naruto’s at the Senju Compound with Dan. But yeah, I should be getting him home,” Narumi said. “You sure you don’t need me to stick around?” 

“Just file a report in the next few days.” Sakumo waved him off. 

Narumi left the base and returned to Dan’s house. The man met him outside. “Is everything sorted?” Dan asked. “Obito told me something was going on.” 

“It’s all good. Any trouble here?” Narumi asked. 

“A few shinobi attacked. Nothing I couldn’t handle. The kids are all safe in their fort,” Dan said. 

“Their fort?” 

Dan escorted him inside, and Narumi laughed at the fort constructed in the middle of the living room. Naruto, Minori, Heiwa, and Sakura poked their heads out from under the blankets. 

“Ji-chan!” Naruto yelled, as he darted out from under the blankets. The other children shrieked as this disrupted the fort, sending pillows and blankets raining down on them.

“Well, that takes care of dismantling the fort,” Dan said. 

“Ready to go home?” Narumi asked. “We can grab ramen on the way.” 

“Yeah! Ramen, ramen!” Naruto chanted. 

Minori accompanied them as they left the Senju compound. “Are Daddy and Papa okay?” he asked. 

“They’re fine. Obito got a little hurt, but Tsunade took care of him,” Narumi assured him. 

Minori grinned. “That’s good.” 

Ichiraku was busy with the usual dinner rush, but Narumi managed to get enough ramen for all of them, including Sasuke. He was glad he’d bought so much when he arrived home to find Itachi waiting for him at the door. 

“I require your assistance to dismantle the seals on the bedroom,” Itachi said. 

Narumi handed off the ramen to Minori and Naruto. Naruto shrieked in glee and raced into the house. “Right, I’ll take care of that. I hope he’s still asleep.” 

“He is under a genjutsu. He will not wake until I wake him,” Itachi said. 

Sure enough, Sasuke was still fast asleep, and only woke up when Itachi sat beside him. “Nii-san?” he said. He blinked and peered around the room. “Where am I?” 

“You are at Naruto’s uncle’s house,” Itachi informed him. 

Sasuke’s stomach groaned. “I’m hungry. Is dinner ready?” he asked groggily. 

“How about you two stay the night here,” Narumi suggested. “I’ve got plenty of food.” 

Itachi nodded. “Thank you, Narumi-san. I believe it would be best for us to stay away for the moment. Shisui is handling the clan while Mother is . . . busy.” 

“The more the merrier,” Narumi said. 

Dinner was initially awkward, as both Minori and Sasuke initially refused to speak to each other. As Naruto and Itachi spoke to them both, however, Sasuke hesitantly began to address Minori, who responded eagerly. Narumi, for his part, soaked in the cheerful atmosphere from the children, still mostly unaware of the events the adults had been engaged in, and enjoyed his ramen. 

***

“Uchiha-san, thank you for joining me. It’s best that we plan what we want to do as quickly as possible, before the council members have a chance to gather their bearings.” Sakumo stared down at the pages of notes in front of him. “If we push everything through now, I think we’ll be able to reach something that can satisfy both parties without the council blocking everything we do.” 

Mikoto took a seat across from him. “What were your thoughts, Hokage-sama?” 

“First thing is to abolish the law forcing all Uchiha to live in the clan compound,” Sakumo said, handing her the top paper. “I don’t know what the Sandaime was thinking, letting that go through. No other clans are forced to live inside their compound, and I see no reason why the Uchiha should be.” 

“Now, this was something I wanted your input on,” he said, handing her another paper. “The lack of definition between the duties of the ANBU and those of the Military Police has caused some friction, so I have here a concrete outline of ANBU’s jurisdiction, and the Military Police’s jurisdiction. In addition, I’ve drafted a program for opening the Military Police to non-Uchiha and recruiting new members. The person in charge of the Military Police would still be required to be a neutral party in politics, but the rest of the Uchiha would not have to remain neutral. The Military Police also requires a new leader, which I would welcome your input on.” 

He waited as Mikoto read over the forms. She made a few additions and corrections before handing them back. He didn’t have any issues with her additions, so he set the paper aside after skimming through it. 

“I will take on the duties of the head of the clan and the head of the Military Police myself,” Mikoto said. 

Sakumi grinned internally; that would certainly throw the elders in a snit. “I look forward to working with you, Uchiha-san. Now, for the next matter . . . the Uchiha who knew about the coup, and who led it.” 

He held up another paper. “Itachi and Shisui have given us the names of all the members who attended the meetings. The punishment for treason, officially, is death. I don’t want to do that; both the village leadership and the clan were at fault, and if I killed everyone who had been involved in the coup, the Uchiha would be left with babies and Academy students. Instead, I am demoting the jounin to chuunin. All those placed in leadership roles in the village have been removed. In addition, you will form a new council of elders consisting of people not involved in planning the coup. I don’t care if the eldest person qualified is twenty years old; the leadership of the clan will be replaced with people not involved in planning the coup, at the very least.” 

Mikoto pursed her lips, clearly displeased, but nodded. 

“As for the last matter, I want to nominate Shisui Uchiha as my successor.” 

Mikoto stiffened. “Why?” 

“Not for an empty, political maneuver, if those are your fears. Shisui is an incredible shinobi; loyal to the village, willing to give everything for his beliefs. He’s talented, intelligent, charismatic, and liked by your clan and the village. He’s the pride of your clan, and I believe he could be the pride of this village.”

“The daimyo and jounin will never agree,” Mikoto said. 

“On the contrary. I already posed the matter to the daimyo, and he agreed enthusiastically. I’m afraid he was never too impressed by my family name. He recognized the Uchiha name, and was already halfway convinced at that point. Then I mentioned Shisui’s name. He is quite popular in the capital, as it turns out—Shunshin no Shisui, the fastest ninja alive,” Sakumo said. “The daimyo is overjoyed to have such a well-known, powerful shinobi as my successor.” 

For a moment, Mikoto was visibly taken aback before she hid her shock. “And the jounin?” 

“I wanted to discuss the matter with Shisui before I posed the matter to the village,” Sakumo said. “If you would speak to your clan about everything we discussed, I would be grateful. If Shisui agrees to be my successor, I will call a meeting of the jounin tomorrow afternoon. In the meantime, I have to meet with the elders and get these measures pushed through. Thank you for your time, Uchiha-san.” 

She bowed. “Thank you, Hokage-sama.” 

***

“Hokage? Me?” Shisui gaped at Sakumo, who had clearly gone crazy as a result of kotoamatsukami. A spike of fear shot through him at the thought; maybe, when he had been reversing Danzo’s genjutsu, he had accidentally interfered too much and imposed his own subconscious desires on the Hokage. Maybe Sakumo was suggesting this because Shisui had made him think he wanted to. “Why me? Surely there are better suited shinobi. Kakashi-senpai, or Obito-senpai, or, or, Kogane Senju.” 

Sakumo snorted. “As amusing as it is to imagine the other Kage faced with Kogane Senju, I’m afraid the results of that would likely end in disaster. Kakashi has no interest in the position, and Obito is despised by the Uchiha.” 

It clicked. “You want an Uchiha to be Hokage. You’re reaching out to the clan. But then why me? Why not Itachi?” 

“Itachi is distrusted by the clan,” Sakumo said. “Many of them believed he had killed you, and that he had betrayed the clan. The clan trusts you; I would even go so far as to say they love you.” 

Sakumo came around and put a hand on Shisui’s shoulder. “Furthermore, although you may be young, and still have growing to do, you have heart. You love this village, and to me, that’s the most important thing. There may be more powerful shinobi, or more famous shinobi, but there are few who love this village more than you do.” 

Shisui sniffled and blinked, trying to hold back the tears that had appeared in his eye. If he cried in front of the Hokage, he would never live it down. 

“Shisui,” Sakumo said. “Will you do me the honor of being my successor?” 

“Yes,” Shisui said, before he could analyze the situation and realize what a disaster it would be. “I accept.” 

“Excellent!” Sakumo said. “Now, the rest of the jounin should be here in half an hour.” 

“Wait, the—you mean, you’re putting it to the vote  _ now _ ?” 

Sakumo clapped him on the shoulder. “The daimyo already approved. You’re halfway there. If you want to make a speech, better get thinking.” 

Shisui’s mind went completely, utterly blank. He glanced at the clock, to see how much time he had left. Fifteen minutes had passed. He stared at the desk, trying desperately to think of anything that didn’t sound stupid or arrogant or childish. 

The door burst open when the clock said he still had five minutes left. “Sorry I’m late,” Obito gasped. “I—old lady—black cat—huh? Where is everyone?” 

“Obito, right on time,” Sakumo said cheerfully. “I apologize for the deception; you have five minutes until the meeting starts.” 

“Hey, that’s devious, old man!” Obito accused. “What if I hadn’t been late? I would’ve been way too early!” 

“Then you could have helped me file paperwork,” Sakumo said. 

Obito sulked and took up position in the corner of the room. A few minutes later, Kakashi strolled in. “Resorted to telling him the meeting time was hours earlier than it really was?” Kakashi said, sympathetically. “We did the same thing on missions. If he got there too early we let him think we’d left because we were tired of waiting for him.” 

“What? You guys always told me you went to get lunch!” Obito exclaimed. 

The door opened again, this time to admit a whole stream of jounin. Shisui had wondered why Sakumo had met with him in this large office instead of the usual small, cozy office he preferred, and now he knew. Even with the jounin forming neat and orderly lines, the room was full to capacity within minutes. 

Shisui stared at the group in shock. He knew, objectively, that there were dozens of jounin inside Konoha at any one time, and even more out on missions. Knowing that was different from actually seeing every available jounin gathered in front of the Hokage, listening to him speak. 

Oh. That was right. The Hokage was speaking. 

Shisui quickly tuned in, hoping he didn’t look too much like he’d been spacing out. He realized, with a sudden jolt of horror, that he was actually standing next to the Hokage, not in line with the other jounin, and that every single jounin in the room was staring at him with thinly veiled curiosity. 

Obito gave him a thumbs up. 

Shisui was going to puke. 

Oh, shit, he’d forgotten to listen to the Hokage again. 

“. . . to nominate my successor,” Sakumo was saying. “Now, don’t look so shocked, I’m not retiring right this instant. But I would like to spend some time with my grandson before he grows up. As such, It is my honor to introduce the young man I am nominating as my successor: Shisui Uchiha!” 

All eyes were on him. Some looked interested, some angry. Some, surprisingly, looked happy, or at least content. A few were nodding thoughtfully. More than a few Nara were dissecting him with their eyes.

Somehow, he managed to find his voice. “I know . . . that things have been difficult between the village and the Uchiha clan,” he said. “The village has felt distrustful; the clan, ostracized. I hope to bring the two together again . . . with the help of all of you here. Thank you.” 

He bowed deeply, not daring to look up and see their expressions. 

The room was silent. 

A sharp whistle pierced the air. “Yeah, Shisui!” Obito cheered. “You better keep that hat safe for me!” 

“Aren’t you embarrassed to say that to someone younger than you?” Kakashi sighed. 

Shisui straightened. To his relief, very few jounin were looking at him in anger or distrust. Many of them looked amused, actually. “I’ll do my best,” he said. 

The jounin were more relaxed now, a few of them talking amongst each other. “I expect your votes on my desk by the end of the week,” Sakumo called above the growing din. “Dismissed!” 

Several jounin clapped Shisui on the back or shoulder on their way out. Obito went so far as to pull him into a back-breaking hug. 

As soon as the last of them had gone, Shisui sank into a chair. Sakumo laughed at whatever face he was making. “Yeah, that’s about how I felt. Welcome to the club.”


	28. Chapter 28

Sasuke was gone from school for a week. When he returned, he was quiet and sullen, not even looking at Naruto when Naruto greeted him. 

“Hey, what’s wrong? Were you sick or something? Are you feeling okay?” Naruto asked. 

“Leave me alone!” Sasuke yelled, his eyes flashing red. 

Naruto jerked back in surprise. “You don’t have to be so mean, I was only asking,” he said. 

“Settle down!” Iruka interrupted. “Class is starting.” 

Naruto sat in stunned silence for the remainder of the morning. After class, however, Iruka held him back. “Naruto,” Iruka said, kneeling down to look him in the eyes. “Sasuke’s family is going through a difficult time right now. His father was killed on a mission. Be patient with him. Be his friend, let him know you’re there, but don’t pester him about it. Can you do that?” 

Naruto nodded vigorously. “I can, Iruka-sensei, I promise!” 

Iruka ruffled his hair. “Thank you, Naruto. You can join your class now.”

Naruto thought about what Iruka said all day; he couldn’t help but be reminded of it whenever he saw Sasuke. Later that afternoon, once Sakura had gone home, he asked Narumi, “Hey, Ji-chan, which one of my parents died first?” 

Narumi looked at him in surprise. “They died at pretty much the same time.” 

“Oh.” Naruto looked at the table. “I guess they didn’t really have a chance to be sad about it then.”

“If I had to guess, I’d say they were more sad about having to leave you behind,” Narumi said. 

“What about you? Were you sad?” Naruto asked. 

“Devastated. I wanted to be here, but I was sent on a mission. I arrived too late to do anything. I kept thinking, if only I had moved a bit faster, or finished the mission sooner, or refused the mission in the first place . . . it felt like I had failed them both.” 

“D’you think Sasuke feels like that?” Naruto said. 

“So that’s what this is about.” Narumi ran a hand through his hair. “Sasuke probably feels a lot of things right now. Sad, afraid, angry, confused . . . he’s dealing with the loss of a very important person right now.”

Naruto thought, for a moment, about how that must feel, and his eyes welled up with tears. He threw himself over the table, colliding with Narumi, and wrapped his arms around him. “Please don’t die, Ji-chan.” 

Narumi’s arms wrapped around him. “I promise, I’ll always do my best to come home to you.”

Naruto sniffled. “I wanna do something to make Sasuke feel better.” 

“How about we make him a bento?” Narumi suggested. “His mom has a lot to deal with right now. I have it on pretty good authority that he likes tomatoes.” 

Naruto wiped the tears leaking from his eyes on Narumi’s shirt. “Kay,” he agreed. 

They made the bento together, and the next day at lunch, Naruto sought out Sasuke. Sasuke used to sit with all the other Uchiha kids, but now he sat alone, in an isolated corner of the training yard. Naruto was worried, at first, that Sasuke would have a lunch and not want to eat the one Naruto had made, but he soon saw that Sasuke’s lunch was just one of the simple sandwiches that could be bought at the nearby convenience stores. 

“I made you this lunch,” Naruto said, thrusting out the bento box. Sasuke frowned. “It’s got tomatoes.” 

Sasuke’s frown deepened, but he accepted the food and began to eat. Naruto sat beside him and opened his own lunch, grinning to himself when Sasuke didn’t make him leave. 

“It’s good,” Sasuke said after a moment. 

“Thanks. Me and Ji-chan made it.” 

Sasuke fell silent again. Naruto could have punched himself; maybe Sasuke and his dad had always made lunch together, and now he’d mentioned making lunch and gotten Sasuke all upset again.

They finished their lunches in silence. Naruto searched for something to say to make Sasuke feel better. “Wanna . . . practice with shuriken?” he suggested. 

Sasuke said nothing. Naruto was an idiot; Sasuke probably practiced shuriken with his dad, and now Naruto had gone and upset him even more. 

“Yeah, okay,” Sasuke said. He got up without another word and headed for the targets. Naruto gaped at his back for a moment before scrambling to his feet and joining him. 

They hurled shuriken at the target in silence for the rest of lunch. After that, it became a kind of habit. Whenever one of them was alone, they would meet up in the training yard and throw shuriken and kunai in silence. 

Naruto waited for Sasuke to want to talk about his dad, or something, but he never really did. Maybe he talked to his mom or his brother; Naruto didn’t know. All he knew was that Sasuke was kind of different. He smiled and talked less, and frowned more. He spent all the time training, but not with friends, instead going off on his own. Naruto thought it seemed kind of lonely, but a bunch of the girls thought it was cool. 

He asked Sakura and Heiwa about it, but they didn’t understand why most of the other girls in their class liked Sasuke. 

Minori asked Ino, who said Sasuke had “an air of mystique and danger,” which didn’t make any sense to Naruto either. 

A lot of the students were distracted, however, by the new arrivals that drifted into the Academy one by one. Most of them weren’t in their class, but it was hard to miss the new faces wandering around the school. They only had one, a boy named Sai. Naruto thought he was kind of weird, mostly because he was always reading books with titles like “Advanced Painting Techniques” and “How to Make Friends for Dummies.” The rest of the girls liked him because he could draw and because he was quiet and liked to look out the window. 

Ino said Sai “had an artist’s heart and soul.” 

Naruto really didn’t understand Ino. 

Still, at least he didn’t have to spend that much time with her, even if she was friends with Sakura and Minori. Naruto spent most of his time training with Sasuke, or practicing seals with Narumi, Sakura, and Itachi, or playing ninja with Minori. 

It seemed like no time at all before they were taking their final exams for the year and waiting anxiously outside the classroom for their grades to be posted. 

The moment Iruka posted the final grades for the year to the board outside the classroom, the entire class swarmed around it. 

“Ugh, you suck, Shikamaru! You’re a few points away from failing,” Ino complained. 

Shikamaru sighed. “Homework is . . . such a drag.” 

“I’ll show you a drag!” 

Naruto scanned it and quickly found his own name, right near the top. He, Sasuke, Minori, Sakura, and Heiwa were all within a few points of each other. “Wow, we all did really good!” 

Behind them, Ino was still berating Shikamaru. “I don’t see why it matters,” he complained. 

“These grades are used to determine our teams, dummy!” 

“Well, yeah, but it’s not like that matters for us, does it? We’re obviously going to be put on the same team with Choji.” 

“Not if I have anything to say about it! I’m going to be on a team with Sasuke-kun!” Ino declared. 

Sasuke scowled at his ranking—second place, below Minori but ahead of Naruto—and left. Naruto watched him go, recognizing by now that Sasuke wasn’t in the mood to talk, until something tugged on his sleeve.

He turned to find Minori grinning up at him. “Come on, Nakkun. I had an idea to share with everybody.” 

Everybody turned out to be just Naruto, Minori, and Sakura. “I had an idea earlier when Ino was talking,” Minori said eagerly as they all situated themselves by the tree with the swing. 

“About how they decide the teams based on class rankings? I thought that was just a rumor,” Sakura said. 

“Nope, it’s really, really true!” Minori said. “I know because that’s how it was on Daddy and Papa’s team, kind of. See, Daddy graduated in only a year but everyone else in his class kept going. So Rin-nee and Kogane-nii thought they were both going to be on a team with Papa, because they were at the top and he was at the bottom, but instead it was Papa, Rin, and Daddy.” 

Naruto tried to parse this sentence. “So, they thought they knew who was going to get paired up, but they were wrong?” 

“They were right! They just forgot to include Daddy,” Minori said. “What I mean is that it’s really easy to tell who you’re going to get paired up with if you’re at the very top or the very bottom, because the top boy and the top girl always get paired up with the bottom student. So if we just aim for those positions, we can all be on a team together!” 

“But hold on, what if we get some random student who graduated in a year, or something?” Naruto said. 

“They don’t let people do that anymore. Even if you start early, you have to do all four years and graduate with your class,” Minori said. “The last person they let graduate early was Itachi Uchiha. And anyways, Daddy and Papa’s team was kind of a special case, I think.” 

“So . . . we just have to get the top positions,” Sakura mused. “But that also means one of us has to fail.” 

“Exactly. They would never put three top students together, because then the teams would be unbalanced. So someone has to pretend to fail!” 

Naruto stuck his hand in the air. “I’ll pretend to fail! Homework is super boring anyways, ya know. I don’t mind not doing it.” 

Minori clicked his tongue. “It’s not that easy, Nakkun! If you get too many things wrong, you’ll fail completely. You need to be exactly on the border between passing and failing. That way, anyone lower than you fails. To be number one all you have to do is get everything right, which is way easier.” 

“Geez, failing is harder than I thought,” Naruto sighed. 

“Which is exactly why I have to do it!” Minori said. “I can calculate exactly how many questions I need to get right in order to maintain the perfect borderline grade.” 

“But me? The top kunoichi?” Sakura bit her lip. “Heiwa is really smart. I don’t think I can beat her.” 

“Don’t worry about Hei-tan! I’ll explain everything,” Minori declared. 

“And that’ll work?” Naruto said skeptically. 

“It will, ‘cause her worst nightmare is probably being on a team with me and Naruto together,” Minori said. 

Naruto thought back to the times the three of them had played ninja together, and had to agree. 

“Anyone else will be super easy for you to beat, since you’re so smart, Sacchan,” Minori said. 

“Maybe. But . . . will the teachers even believe that you’re suddenly failing? Won’t they be suspicious?” 

Minori’s smile was sweet, but somehow it gave Naruto the shivers. “Don’t worry. I have a plan for that.” 

***

Even a year after they moved there, it was still kind of strange, living in Konoha again. Narumi had gotten used to being surrounded by other Uzumaki, to waking up to the sun shining through the beaded curtains hung in the windows and the gulls crying overhead and the waves lapping against the shore, to smelling salty sea air when he breathed in deeply. And this Konoha was different from the one he had grown up with; there were more Uchiha and Senju, and the technology was different; Sakumo had actually asked Narumi if he wanted a computer for his office, and telephone lines wound their way around the city, serving as perches for any shinobi seeking an aerial view of the village. Naruto, instead of spending his free time simply playing in the park or watching clouds, sometimes went to the arcade with the other kids in his class. 

Naruto had adjusted quickly to life in Konoha; he complained about how boring the Academy was, although the complaining had dropped off somewhat now that he’d started his second year of classes. At the moment, Narumi could hear him deep in conversation with Sakura and Minori, the two kids who had come to be his best friends this time around. 

The thought still put a smile on Narumi’s face. Naruto wasn’t alone. Not like he had been. 

With Danzo finally dealt with and the mess with the Uchiha as resolved as it was going to get, Narumi finally had time to stop and take a breath of fresh air. Itachi was off spending a rare moment with Sasuke and Sakura was entrenched in Naruto’s room with the two boys, so Narumi didn’t even have his students to worry about. 

That left him in his current position, sitting in the living room under the kotatsu with the porch doors open to reveal the white gleam of freshly fallen snow. Typically it didn’t snow in Konoha in January, but it had been unusually cold for the season. Even under the kotatsu, the brisk winter air nipped at his nose, making him sneeze. 

“You know, you wouldn’t be so cold if you closed the doors.” 

Narumi looked up, a grin spreading across his face as he spotted Sakumo standing on the porch. “Sakumo! Come in. And yeah, it wouldn’t be, but it’s so nice today. I’m not used to the snow anymore; it never snows in Uzushio.” 

“I like it because it means no one wants to bother me with meetings,” Sakumo said, slipping out of his shoes and leaving them on the porch, shivering as his bare feet touched the tatami. “Yikes! That’s cold.” 

Sakumo practically dove under the kotatsu, pressing up against Narumi’s side to escape the cold. Laughing, Narumi wrapped and arm around his shoulder. “Wuss. It’s not that cold out.” 

“Easy for you to say, when you’ve been under the kotatsu all day,” Sakumo accused. 

“We’ve had worse. Remember that mission in Yuki?” 

“Don’t remind me. I’m still shocked my toes are all still attached to my feet.” 

“Good thing I had you with me so that old lady could take a liking to you, or I’d probably still be frozen out there!” 

Sakumo groaned and hid his face in Narumi’s shoulder. “I thought we agreed to never speak about that.” 

“You said we shouldn’t. I never agreed to anything,” Narumi said. 

A gust of wind blew snow through the air. Sakumo shivered and moved closer to Narumi, burrowing his face into Narumi’s shoulder. Narumi yelped as an icy-cold nose pressed against his neck. “You’re freezing!” 

“You’re warm,” Sakumo mumbled into Narumi’s shoulder. 

Part of Narumi wanted to tell him to summon his wolves to cuddle if he was so cold, but, well, Narumi didn’t really mind all that much. He never minded with Sakumo. 

“So, what brings you all the way over here, anyways?” Narumi asked. “Anything in particular?” 

“Mm, if anyone asks, I came here to discuss vital matters pertaining to village security. Top secret, of course.” Sakumo shifted his head just enough that Narumi could see his sly grin. “But between you and me, I just wanted to see you.” 

Narumi returned his grin. “Skipping out on work, huh? Have I been a bad influence on you?” 

“There’s nothing vital to do, and Shisui is handling the rest,” Sakumo said, waving a hand. “It’s good practice for him.” 

“The joys of having a lackey,” Narumi laughed as he began the struggle of getting out from under the kotatsu, unentangling his legs from Sakumo’s and attempting to get out without stepping on Sakumo’s long hair. “So, you’re all mine for the day?” 

Sakumo’s response, quiet as it was, was lost as Narumi’s legs slipped out from under him. He flailed, banging his arm against the kotatsu as he went down. Sakumo shouted, in surprise or pain, Narumi wasn’t sure which, as Narumi crashed into him. 

Narumi’s arm smacked against the floor, barely preventing his face from colliding with Sakumo’s. For a moment, all he could do was stare into Sakumo’s wide eyes, breathing heavily.

Sakumo’s eyes were very nice from this angle. 

Narumi cleared his throat and hunted for something to say. “What did you say?”

Sakumo looked just as stunned as Narumi felt. “I—what?” 

“I asked you something, and you said something,” Narumi said. 

“Oh. No idea,” Sakumo said. 

“Oh,” Narumi said. “Okay.” 

They stared at each other, only tearing their gazes away as running footsteps approached the room. “Ji-chan!” Naruto called. “Me and Sakura and Minori heard a noise!” 

Narumi abruptly realized the position he was in, stretched out over Sakumo, their faces scant centimeters apart. He cleared his throat and got up, this time more careful not to slip on the tatami in his socks, and made his way to the kitchen. “We’re fine. Just fell down.” 

Naruto laughed. “Jeez, Ji-chan, are you a ninja or not?” Without waiting for a response, he ran back to his bedroom. “It’s okay, Ji-chan just fell over!” 

Narumi reached up into the cupboard and pulled out a bottle of sake—Sakumo’s favorite—and two cups. “Sorry about that.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” Sakumo’s eyes lit up as Narumi returned to the kotatsu. “Is that what I think it is?” 

“Bought the last bottles from the store the last time I was there,” Narumi said. “I thought you’d like it.” 

He took his place under the kotatsu before pouring the sake for them. He hadn’t put it in the refrigerator, but it was still cold just from the temperature of the house. 

“I’m surprised Naruto and his friends aren’t hogging the kotatsu,” Sakumo commented. 

Narumi laughed. “Last I checked, they were all huddled on the bed, wrapped up in blankets. I think they’re studying.” 

“Already?” Sakumo said. “It’s only the first week of classes. The chuunin exams haven’t even started.”

“They have some kind of project they’re working on,” Narumi said. “No idea what. Naruto’s been refusing to tell me anything about it.” 

They clinked their cups together and sipped the sake. Sakumo hummed contentedly. “That hits the spot.”

“It’s been a little while since we’ve been able to do this,” Narumi said. 

“Things have been insane with the Uchiha. At least now things are finally settling down,” Sakumo sighed. “Maybe I’ll be able to slip away for longer than a shogi game now.” 

Narumi had never expected to enjoy shogi, but somehow, Sakumo made him enjoy all sorts of things he’d never expected. “Maybe I’ll actually manage to beat you one of these days.” 

“You’re welcome to try!” Sakumo laughed. “It’s very refreshing to win for once. Shikaku beats the pants off me without even trying.” 

Narumi waggled his eyebrows at Sakumo, prompting a snort of laughter from the other man. “I think Yoshino might have something to say about that.” 

“You’re right, you’re right. I suppose I’ll have to refrain from wrecking any homes today,” Sakumo said with a dramatic sigh. “I’ll have to tell Shikaku that the pants stay on from now on. He’ll be so disappointed.” 

“Sounds like you and Shikaku’ve been having much more interesting shogi games than you and me. Something you want to share with the class?” Narumo teased. 

Sakumo nodded solemnly. “You’ve got me. Yet another man has fallen to my flawless seduction technique.” 

_ Yeah, and he’s sitting right here, _ Narumi didn’t say. 

Their feet brushed under the kotatsu. Sakumo wiggled his toes against Narumi’s sock-covered feet. “Your feet are cold,” Narumi said, which of course only made Sakumo press his feet against Narumi’s even more. 

“You’re like a furnace,” Sakumo said. 

“It’s an, uh, Uzumaki thing.” 

“Is it?” 

“Nah, I made that up. I just run hot, I guess.” 

Sakumo snorted. “Yeah, you do.” 

His words took a moment to process. For a few seconds, Narumi just stared at him, and then a grin spread across his face as he leaned in close. “You saying that you think I’m hot, Sakumo?” 

He expected Sakumo to make light of it, like they usually did. Instead, his lips quirked upwards in a small smile. “Maybe I am.” 

Narumi blinked at him. “Wha—wait, what?” 

Sakumo pulled back, the smile falling from his face. “I’m sorry, forget what I said. It was completely inappropriate. I’m the Hokage, and you have a child—” 

“Sakumo, shut up,” Narumi said. 

“Oh, god, this is more embarrassing than that time with Orochimaru and Jiraiya and the supply closet,” Sakumo babbled. “Uh, Narumi, why are you making that face?” 

Narumi leaned forward. Sakumo leaned back, and back, and back, until he was lying flat on the ground, his wiry hair spread out around him. 

“What face?” Narumi said. 

“Like you’re ready to attack me,” Sakumo breathed. 

Narumi lowered himself down those last few centimeters, pressing their lips together. Sakumo’s lips were dry and chapped, but the inside of his mouth was warm and moist. It was good that Narumi had long since perfected the art of breathing while kissing, because he never wanted to stop kissing Sakumo. 

“He-ey! Minori, Sakura! I think we’re gonna have to make our own snacks, ‘cause Ji-chan’s busy kissing Sakumo-jiji!” 

“What?” 

Two sets of footsteps raced into the living room. Narumi jerked away from Sakumo and to find two wide-eyed Academy students staring right at him; Naruto, having dismissed Narumi and Sakumo already, had wandered off to the kitchen. 

Sakumo groaned and let his arm flop over his face. “There goes our shogi time.” 

Narumi couldn’t help but laugh as he got to his feet, careful to avoid stepping on Sakumo. “Is that what we’re calling it? Naruto, what did your friends want to eat?” 

Sakura and Minori continued to stare as Narumi crossed the living room to the kitchen. Sakumo remained where he was, prone on the ground; Narumi assumed he was taking a moment to recover himself. 

Naruto was already halfway inside a cabinet, rooting around for something to eat. “Dunno, cup ramen?” 

“What your friends want to eat, not what you want to eat,” Narumi said. “It’s about time for dinner, anyways. You shouldn’t be snacking.” 

It was still a little weird, being the adult voice of reason and the one to listen to Naruto whine, “But Ji-chan, I haven’t had cup ramen in forever!” Honestly, most of his parental rules and lectures were ripped from Tsubame, who had been the one to attempt to teach manners to Naruto. It was a work in progress, as evidenced by Naruto’s sulk at being denied his cup ramen. Narumi left him to it and turned to Minori and Sakura. 

Minori’s sleeve flapped through the air as he waved his arm up and down. “I know! Hamburg steak!” 

Sakura nodded when he looked at her. “That’s okay with me.” 

Narumi dug through his wallet until he came up with a few bills that seemed large enough and handed them to Naruto. “Run to the store and grab some ground beef and pork for me. You can use the extra to get snacks.” 

Naruto brightened. “Thanks, Ji-chan! You’re the best. Be right back!” 

He raced off, slamming the door behind him. Sakura and Minori remained where they were, their eyes fixed on Narumi as he retrieved the other ingredients from around the kitchen. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see them nudging each other and making faces. Sakumo, still at the kotatsu, had finally sat up and was sipping at his sake. 

“Narumi-jiji, are you and Jii-chan gonna get married?” Minori blurted out. 

Sakumo spewed his sake all over the table. Narumi dropped the breadcrumbs he was holding and spilled them all over the counter. “Shit,” he said, as Sakumo hacked and coughed. Sakura hurried over to help clean up the breadcrumbs, while Minori bounded over to Sakumo and cheerfully pounded his back until Sakumo waved him away. 

“Uh, I think that’s a conversation for another time,” Sakumo said weakly. “Minori, how about you spring stuff like that on people when they’re not drinking anything.” 

“Got it, Jii-chan, sorry, Jii-chan!” 

Sakura was still sneaking little peeks at Narumi, even as she finished helping him brush the breadcrumbs off the counter and into the trash. Narumi really hoped he didn’t look as flushed as he felt. 

Naruto burst back into the house, pink-cheeked from the cold, snow dusting his hair and coat, and held a plastic bag aloft. “Got it, Ji-chan! Sakura, I got those weird cake things you like!” 

“Okay!” Narumi said, clapping his hands together to draw their attention before they could get completely distracted by snacks. “Who’s going to help me make dinner?” 

Three hands shot into the air. Before too long, he had them busy chopping onions and mixing the hamburger together and preparing rice and miso soup for sides. Once they were completely distracted, he slinked back to the kotatsu. 

“Sorry about that,” he said, offering a sheepish grin to Sakumo. 

Sakumo waved a hand. “No, no, I should apologize for Minori. I think he gets his lack of tact from Orochimaru.” 

“Or Obito, or Kaede,” Narumi said, with a teasing grin. “Face it, he was doomed from the start.” 

Sakumo laughed. “You may have a point there. It’s hard to believe he’s already so big. The years just fly by, don’t they?” 

Narumi looked over to the kitchen, where Naruto and Minori were bickering over how much breadcrumbs they should add to the meat mixture, while Sakura dutifully minded the rice and soup. “They sure do,” he said. He got to his feet, and gave Sakumo one last smile. “I should go break them up before they start going at it with kunai.” 

Sakumo’s smile was as soft as Narumi had ever seen it. “I’ll be waiting.” 

For once, as Narumi returned to the kitchen, he was considering sending the kids off to Kakashi and Obito’s house for the night for reasons unrelated to their personal safety. 

***

Once the uncharacteristic January snow melted, the second-year class of the Academy gathered out in the yard under the watchful eyes of Iruka and Mizuki. Most of them weren’t paying much attention—Shikamaru seemed to be attempting to sleep standing up—but Naruto and his friends had their eyes fixed on Iruka as he stood in the center of the sparring ring. 

“Okay, class, we’re going to have our first taijutsu spars of the year today,” Iruka said. “Now, remember, you’re graded based both on how well you perform and whether or not you win. First up, Hinata and Sakura!” 

“Yeah, Sakura!” Naruto cheered. “You can do it!” 

The two girls entered the ring; Naruto couldn’t help but notice that Hinata looked ready to faint right then and there. “Hey, I thought the Hyuuga were really good at taijutsu,” he whispered to Minori. 

“They are, mostly,” Minori said. “Hinata-chan’s problem is a little bit different.” 

Sakura launched her attack, using academy style taijutsu with a little of the style Minori used thrown in; they’d been training together more and more to get Sakura’s physical abilities to a higher level. Hinata stumbled backwards and brought her hand up with barely enough time to block a punch. She glanced to the side, towards the crowd, giving Sakura an opportunity to push her back. Hinata yelped and fell backwards, landing just outside the ring. 

“Match!” Iruka declared. “Sakura, good job. I can tell you’ve been working hard. Hinata, focus on your opponent, not the crowd. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to fighting in front of a group soon enough.” 

“Next match,” Mizuki announced. “Kiba and Minori!” 

Minori winked at Naruto. “Wish me luck!” 

“Prepare to get your ass kicked, squirt,” Kiba growled as he entered the ring. 

Minori pouted at him. “Don’t be mean!” 

“This is a battle, not dance class,” Kiba laughed. “Now quit being a baby and come at me.” 

“Kiba, it isn’t—oh, nevermind,” Iruka sighed. “Begin.” 

Minori waited, bouncing on the balls of his feet slightly, until Kiba got tired of waiting and ran forward with a yell. “Get him, Minori!” Naruto yelled. 

Kiba’s head collided directly with Minori’s stomach, and Minori went flying. Naruto watched, eyes wide, as Minori flew a good three or four feet back and collapsed in a heap. He struggled to his feet, looking even paler than normal, and promptly threw up.

“Oh, gross,” Ino said. 

“Iruka-sensei? I don’t feel so good. Can I go to the nurse?” Minori asked. 

“Of course. Come back when you’re feeling better,” Iruka said sympathetically. “Work a little on your dodging speed for next time. Kiba, be a little less rough. These are your comrades, not your enemies. Next up, Naruto and Shikamaru.” 

As Naruto walked into the ring, Minori gave him a shaky thumbs-up from behind the teachers’ backs. 

“What a drag,” Shikamaru said. “Can I forfeit?” 

“Not unless you want to fail,” Iruka said. 

Shikamaru sighed. “Then my mom will nag me even more . . . fine. Let’s get this over with.” 

Shikamaru threw a punch, kind of. Mostly he just walked forward with a fist extended. Naruto walked out of the way. Shikamaru tried to kick him, a little. Naruto grabbed his shoulders and pushed him out of the ring. Shikamaru went with no resistance. 

Once he was out of the ring, Naruto turned to look at Iruka. “Uh, sensei? Does that count?” 

“Yes,” Iruka sighed, with visible reluctance. “It counts. Shikamaru . . . please, put in a little more effort, or I will be having words with your mother. Naruto, you did the best you could. Next, Sasuke and Choji.” 

Sakura and Naruto gave each other a subtle high five. Their plan was off to a great start. 

***

Iruka gaped at the test on his desk. He looked at the name, then at the grade, then at the name. 

“Mizuki?” he said weakly. “Can you take a look at this test?” 

“Of course,” Mizuki agreed. 

He handed it back moments later. “I don’t see the problem. Your grading looks fine.” 

“Look at the name.” 

Mizuki took a second look at the test, and his eyes widened. “Really?” 

“Really,” Iruka said. “Minori Hatake just nearly failed a test.” He gazed at the ceiling. “Is this an alternate universe? Is that what’s going on? Was he replaced by an alien who has never heard of ninjutsu before? ‘Ninjutsu is like super cool and flashy and stuff.’ There’s no way this is the same kid who used the word ‘antidisestablishmentarianism’ in an essay. The troubles with taijutsu I can understand. He’s small for his age, the other boys are starting to get a lot bigger and he hasn’t, but this? Up until now his test scores have been in the top five! His homework has been a little sloppy lately, but this is ridiculous. I’ll have to call him in. Maybe something is bothering him.” 

And so, after school the next day, Iruka held Minori back after class. “Minori, I wanted to discuss your last test. You’ve done so well on theoretical exams in the past that this seems very unusual for you. Is something the matter?” 

Minori giggled nervously. “Um, sorry, sensei. But it was super-duper boring!” 

“B-boring?” Iruka gaped at him. “Minori . . . it’s a test. It isn’t supposed to be fun.” 

“Eh? That’s not cool at all!” Minori pouted. “Playing ninja is super fun, so this should be fun too!” 

“It’s . . . Minori, playing a ninja is very different from actually being a ninja. Ninja have to do a lot of things that aren’t very fun. Like tests, and paperwork.” 

Minori sulked. “I’d rather play ninja than do stupid homework.” 

Iruka sighed. “Just . . . try a little harder on the next one, okay?” 

Minori beamed, switching moods so quickly Iruka felt like he had whiplash. “‘Kay, Iruka-sensei! Can I go play now?” 

“You can go,” Iruka said. Minori cheered and ran from the room. Iruka didn’t often question the way things were run in the village, but in this case, he had to wonder at the wisdom of starting children as young on this path at such a young age. 

***

Obito blinked at the report card on the table. “Uh, Kakashi? Can you come take a look at this? Because either my eyes are going bad faster than we thought they would, or something really weird is going on.” 

“Minori’s grades?” Kakashi picked up the paper and scanned through it. He blinked. “Just above failing in everything from taijutsu to . . . kunoichi class? How do you fail kunoichi class?” 

“I think the real question is, why is our son even in kunoichi class,” Obito said dryly. 

“Mah, Obito, boys can like tasks traditionally assigned to kunoichi. Inoichi runs a flower shop.” Kakashi scanned the paper again. “Ah, apparently you fail kunoichi class by not showing up half the time.” 

“Once again, not really the point. The point is, how is our son suddenly failing all his classes? I thought he got your brains, not mine!” Obito clutched at his head. “Oh my god, are they sleeper genes? Did my stupidity suddenly activate when we least expected it?” 

“Obito, don’t be ridiculous.” Kakashi flipped the paper over and examined it. “Ah. I think I understand.” 

Obito leaned over. “The class ranking for the year? I don’t get it.” 

“First place shinobi: Naruto Uzumaki. Although Sasuke Uchiha is a very close second. First place kunoichi: Sakura Haruno, again with Heiwa Senju close behind. Then, exactly in the middle of the class, the last one who still qualifies to pass: Minori Hatake.” 

“Can you get to the point already, Bakashi?” 

“He’s manipulating the rankings,” Kakashi said. “He’s failing on purpose to get put on a team with his friends.” 

Obito looked at him. “I feel like you shouldn’t be so happy about our son failing his classes.” 

“He’s only nearly failing. That’s the whole point. And besides, who am I to get in the way of such a lovely example of teamwork and friendship?” 

Obito laughed. “That’s certainly true! Hey, I bet they would pass sensei’s bell test, no problem. I mean, they’re already friends and all that. Remember how much we hated each other at first? Looking back, I’m surprised sensei passed us at all.” 

“Well. We’ll see about that, won’t we?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I’ve been thinking . . . it might be a good time to take on a genin team soon.” 

“You know, that’s a pretty good idea. Maybe I should get a genin team!” 

“Those poor children.” 

***

“Ugh, that Sasuke . . . Minori, I change my mind. I want to be the one failing.” Naruto threw his textbook down on the bed. “This is horrible. You’re lucky, Sakura; Heiwa is actually willing to let you win. He’s always studying, so I have to be always studying!” 

“At least you won your last sparring match with him,” Sakura said.

“Yeah, but that just means he’s gonna train like a crazy person and kick my ass next time. When does he even sleep?” Naruto groaned. “I’m so sick of studying. I wish Ji-chan would teach me shadow clones already.” 

“Don’t you already know how to do water clones?” Sakura asked.

“Well, yeah. But shadow clones are totally cooler! You get all their memories when they dispel, so you can use them for training. But they take a lot of chakra, so they’re technically a forbidden technique. Ji-chan said he won’t teach me until I graduate. I want to graduate and be a genin already.” 

“You don’t have long to go, Nakkun!” Minori cheered. “You can do it! You can do it! Kick Sasuke’s butt!” 

Naruto roared and leapt to his feet. “Yeah! Sasuke’s not gonna know what hit him. Come on, Minori, quiz me again. Give me the tough ones this time, I can handle it! I’ll memorize the names of every single Uchiha who ever existed! And every Senju! Take that, founding clans exam!” 

“Okay, Madara Uchiha’s brother!” 

“Izuna!” 

“His father!” 

“Tajima!” 

“When was Madara born?” 

“Twenty . . . six years before the village was founded. Yeah, I’m on a roll!” 

“Don’t relax just yet. The hard questions are yet to come . . . and we’re doing physics and math next,” Minori said wickedly.

Naruto groaned. “Come on, those aren’t even required to graduate! Even Sasuke doesn’t care about those that much.” 

“The grades still count for the final rankings,” Minori sing-songed. “The faster we finish theory, the sooner we can move on to ninjutsu and taijutsu. Besides, if you do super well on them, you’ll totally blind-side him.” 

“Ugh, fine,” Naruto groaned. “But we’re taking a taijutsu break first. Now let’s get this over with. This is worse than learning all the founding members of Uzushio.” 

“For someone who hates studying, you sure do have a broad theoretical background,” Sakura noted. 

Naruto chuckled nervously. “Well, Ji-chan made me study a whole bunch when we lived in Uzushio, so I’d be more prepared, ya know.” 

“You’d think he would have made you learn more about Konoha’s history instead of Uzushio’s,” Sakura said. “Although I suppose it makes sense. He must have wanted you to retain some of your culture. It must be hard growing up away from your family.” 

“It was pretty weird at first,” Naruto agreed. “Everyone’s hair is so boring here! In Uzushio, red or blue are really common colors. I thought everyone was related when I moved here. Oh, except you, Sakura! You kind of remind me of an Uzumaki, ya know.” 

Sakura blushed and buried her face in her book. “Just get to work, dummy, or you’ll never beat Sasuke. Itachi-senpai has been helping him study recently, now that he’s done training for the jounin exams.” 

Naruto and Minori grinned at each other. “Ooh, Itachi-senpai,” Naruto crooned. “He’s so smart and amazing, Sasuke will beat me for sure with his help. Then you can be on his team, and you’ll get to see Itachi-senpai all . . . the . . . time.” 

“So mean, Sacchan, planning to abandon us like this,” Minori sniffled. “Who needs friends, when you have Itachi-senpai?” 

“Itachi-senpai is the greatest shinobi in the whole, wide, world. He went to see the daimyo, and the daimyo immediately bowed down and said, ‘Uchiha-sama, please, my throne is rightfully yours, and I am your faithful servant!’” Naruto said. 

“He went to see the Tsuchikage,” Minori added, eagerly joining in the game. “And the Tsuchikage took one look at him and fell to his knees and said, ‘Uchiha-sama, please, don’t wage war against my village! I could never win against someone as mighty as you. Here, take my hat, and also please marry my granddaughter and have lots of super-ninja babies.’” 

“Itachi-senpai went to see the Sage of Six Paths.” Minori and Naruto looked at Sakura gleefully. She blushed, but continued. “The Sage took one look at him and prostrated himself at his feet and said, ‘Uchiha-sama, you have the greatest potential of any shinobi I have ever met! I will train you and teach you everything I know, so that you can bring peace to the world!’” 

“That’s dumb,” Naruto teased. “Everyone knows the Sage of Six Paths isn’t alive anymore.” 

“Itachi-senpai is just that amazing,” Minori said wisely. 

“He’s so amazing he brought the Sage of Sixth Paths back from the dead with his sheer awesomeness? Or, no, he died and met the Sage, but then came back to life more powerful than ever?” Naruto stroked his chin, imitating the Hokage. “I don’t know which one is cooler. Ouch!” 

He rubbed his head, and picked up the offending projectile—his history textbook. “He’s definitely cool enough to have dodged that,” Sakura said, distinctly unimpressed. “Let’s get back to work! These tests won’t study for themselves.” 

“Sir, yes, sir!”

The three of them exchanged grins before turning back to their books, buckling down for another evening of studying. They had this team-rigging thing in the bag.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And next chapter we have a time skip to graduation! Hm, how do you think the teams will end up . . . ? 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	29. Chapter 29

“Okay, class, settle down!” Iruka called. “That’s too settled, Shikamaru. Wake up!” 

Slowly, the class calmed down. Sakura, Minori, and Naruto exchanged eager grins. 

“As you all know, today is your final exam. I’m very proud of you for making it this far. Now, do your best on the last test of your career as Academy students! You all know the drill. Pencils out, books away.” Iruka handed out the papers. “Any cheating will be punished; save that until you’re at least chuunin. Everyone have a test? Good. You have two hours. Begin!” 

Naruto quickly set to work; Sakura and Minori had calculated how much time he had to answer each question, and made him practice tests over and over again until he was completing even the hardest questions within the time limit. They’d even gone around to the genin from previous years and gathered up old tests to study from. 

The first section of the test was easy enough, focusing on Konoha’s history. There were a few questions about Uzushio, too, which was funny because they hadn’t really spent much time on Uzushio’s history. He knew it from living in Uzushio, and the information was in their textbook, so he supposed it was to trip up people who hadn’t done the textbook readings. He hadn’t wanted to, but Sakura had memorized the textbook and recited it to him while they trained. 

The second section was also pretty easy, focused on the ninja rules and the way the village was organized and stuff like that. Minori had managed to persuade Heiwa to help them study this part; she knew a bunch of stuff on how the village was run that they never even mentioned in class. Naruto knew way more than he actually needed to know for the test; he wrote down a lot of it anyways. Sometimes Iruka awarded bonus points if you really went above and beyond. 

The third part was the tricky one: math and physics. Naruto always made sure to finish the other parts quickly so he had more time to spend on the third part. Sakura and Minori were both really good at this math stuff, but Naruto had to think about it a lot more carefully. They’d spent hours drilling him all the physics and math equations they had to remember, teaching him how to find them if he couldn’t remember, and giving him a variety of tricks and shortcuts that they weren’t taught in class. Even with all that, it was slow going, especially considering he didn’t want to make any mistakes. 

He managed to finish with a few minutes to spare, and spent them checking his math.

“Time’s up!” Iruka announced. “Pencils down, hand in your papers.” 

Next to him, Minori yawned and sat up. “How’d it go, Nakkun?” 

“Pretty good,” Naruto said. 

“Out to the training field, everyone! It’s time the taijutsu and weapons section of the exam.” 

They filed out into the yard, which was empty of all other classes. Iruka and Mizuki had them form two lines, with one teacher grading each line. They had ten shuriken and ten kunai each, and were graded on both accuracy and precision. 

Naruto, Minori, and Sakura had trained in this yard to get used to the positioning of the targets. By now, it was second nature to fling the weapons at the target. 

“Very good, Naruto,” Iruka praised, once Naruto had scored his last bulls-eye. “Next, Sasuke.” 

Sasuke scored ten bulls-eyes with each weapon, too, and then smirked at Naruto when he was done. Jerk. 

Sakura did pretty well, too, scoring in the segment next to the bulls-eye at the very least. Minori threw his weapons in a manner that looked haphazard, but that Naruto knew was carefully calculated to look random but still earn the points he needed on this section of the exam. 

“Minori . . .” Iruka sighed. “This is your final exam. Please take it seriously.” 

“Sorry, sensei!” Minori chirped. 

“Next, Shikamaru. I repeat, please take it seriously.” 

“What a pain,” Shikamaru muttered. His eyes were closed as he threw the weapons. He still managed to hit the target though, and even did a little better than Minori. Naruto had to admit, his ability to do things while half-asleep was impressive. 

Iruka sighed. “Thank you, Shikamaru. Next, Kiba!” 

Once both of the lines had finished, they moved to the sparring rings. For their final exam, each of them had to fight one of the two teachers. They switched teachers, this time, so Naruto ended up facing Mizuki. He thought he did pretty well; he lasted the whole five minutes without getting knocked out of the ring, and although Mizuki hit him a couple times, Naruto managed to hit him back. 

Sasuke, unfortunately, did just as well. Naruto really hated that guy sometimes. 

Sakura didn’t last the whole time, but she did last the longest out of all the girls in their group, which was good. Minori carefully allowed himself to be hit several times, hit back a couple times to earn some points, and allowed himself to be kicked out of the ring at the halfway point. Naruto had only a vague idea of how the taijutsu spars were graded, but Minori had it all figured out, so this was probably the best way to barely pass. 

Once all the spars were finished, they took a break for lunch. Minori theorized that the teachers were also using the time to grade the essays; apparently there was an entire horde of teachers inside, pouring over the papers. After lunch, it was time for their ninjutsu exams. They waited in the classroom until they were called by the teachers. Most of them were too nervous to talk; Naruto caught sight of Hinata anxiously practicing hand signs under the desk. 

“Haruno, Sakura,” was the first of their group to be called. She left with a cheerful wave; Sakura’s chakra control was so good that she didn’t have any trouble with the techniques they learned in the academy

“Hatake, Minori,” went next. Minori gave him a thumbs-up before leaving; Naruto had a long time to wait. 

Students filtered from the room. 

“Uchiha, Sasuke,” was called, and then, at long last “Uzumaki, Naruto.” 

“Okay, Naruto, show us your Substitution Jutsu,” Iruka said, motioning to a log at the other end of the classroom. “Substitute, and then substitute back.” 

Naruto did as told, and then for the next part transformed into the Hokage. That was pretty easy, considering the guy came around for dinner practically every other day. 

“Now, show us your Clone Jutsu,” Iruka said. “Make three clones.” 

Naruto took a deep breath. “Water Clone Jutsu!” 

Water swirled beside him, and in an instant three clones had joined him. “A water clone! Very impressive, Naruto,” Iruka noted. He set down his papers and conferred briefly with Mizuki. “Congratulations! You’re now a genin of Konoha. Come back tomorrow for your team assignment.” 

Naruto grabbed the headband and stared at the symbol for a moment. As a kid, he’d always dreamed of the moment he would have a headband with the Uzushio spiral, just like his uncle. The Konoha leaf was different, but the moment was no less sweet. 

He tied the headband around his forehead. “Thanks, sensei. I’m gonna be a great ninja, ya know!” 

“I know you will,” Iruka said. “Now, head on out. We still have a few students to test.” 

Naruto ran outside and made a beeline for his friends, both of whom were wearing headbands and waiting by the swing. “Sakura! Minori! I did it!” 

“We did it!” Sakura exclaimed. 

Minori jumped up and thrust a fist in the air. “Yeah! We did it! Now we just have to see if our plan worked!” 

“Plan?” 

Naruto whirled around and threw himself forwards, colliding with Narumi. “Ji-chan! I passed! I’m a genin now!” 

“You did!” Narumi said, as he laughed and ruffled Naruto’s hair. “I think you get to order as much ramen as you want today.” 

“Ichiraku? You’re the best!” 

Behind him, he was aware of Minori running forward and throwing himself at his parents; Sakura’s parents arrived as well, and she proudly showed off her headband to them. Sasuke ran by, headed towards his mother and brother, who had just arrived at the gates. Heiwa’s dad was there, along with her older brother. Even Sai had someone waiting for him, a boy Naruto vaguely remembered had been in the year ahead of them. He wished, just a little, that his parents could have been there to congratulate him, but Narumi was there, beaming down at him like Naruto had just become the Hokage. 

“Ready to go? I have it on good authority that someone was promised a super cool jutsu later,” Narumi said. 

“You’re really gonna teach me? Yeah, let’s go! Bye, Minori, bye Sakura, bye Sasuke! I’ll see you tomorrow!” 

***

“Hokage-sama? I have the final class rankings for the graduating academy class.” 

Sakumo accepted the list. “Thank you, Iruka-sensei. Would you mind remaining and giving your input? I’m meeting with the jounin to assign the teams in the morning, and some advice would be appreciated.” 

He took a look at the list, smiling at the first name he saw. Naruto was just as brilliant as his uncle and parents. “Well done, Naruto,” he chuckled. 

The name of the top kunoichi was a surprise--a civilian student, Sakura Haruno, another of Naruto’s friends. “I’m surprised Heiwa Senju isn’t the top kunoichi,” he noted, even as he wrote Sakura’s name next to Naruto’s on the list of teams. 

“She missed out by just a few points. It was remarkably close,” Iruka said. 

He scanned the list quickly, already surprised Minori’s name wasn’t at the top, and even more so when he found it on the bottom. “Minori got last place?” 

“He’s definitely a genius,” Iruka sighed. “He’s just . . . unmotivated and immature. I had second thoughts about passing him, but he did qualify.” 

Sakumo raised an eyebrow. Unmotivated was one of the last words he would have used to describe his grandson--Minori had been demanding to be trained since he started talking. Immature, perhaps on the surface, but Sakumo knew that Minori took his ninja training seriously, at the very least. 

He wrote down Minori’s name beneath the names of the top shinobi and top kunoichi, and nearly burst out laughing when he realized what those three had done. “I see,” he said, gravely. “Well, perhaps Naruto and Sakura will be a good influence on him.” 

He scanned up the list. An Inuzuka and a Nara at the bottom; unsurprising, especially for the Nara. They tended to do the bare minimum. This one had actually performed a little better than normal. “Shikamaru,” Iruka explained. “I’ve had words with his mother--and I think she had a few for Shikamaru.” 

“And Kiba?” 

“Excellent at taijutsu, but very rowdy. I think he skipped more days than he attended,” Iruka said. 

Both Sasuke Uchiha and Heiwa Senju were near the top, right below Naruto and Sakura, respectively. Shino Aburame had done well, not surprising considering what Sakumo knew of his father. The boy from ROOT, Sai, had also performed well.

“He and Shino get along surprisingly well,” Iruka said. “They both tend to be quiet and have trouble making friends, so I suppose they bonded.” 

Ino Yamanaka and Hinata Hyuuga were both towards the bottom of the list, with Choji Akimichi also close to the bottom. 

“Ino is at that age where she’s interested in relationships and little else,” Iruka sighed. “And Hinata has . . . confidence issues. As for Choji, he’s friends with Shikamaru and Kiba, and tends to go along with their lazier sides.” 

“How are Choji and Shikamaru with Ino?” 

“Well, she certainly knows how to motivate them,” Iruka chuckled. “Shikamaru complains that she nags him as much as his mother. They’ve grown up together, and know each other well. They have some growing to do, but they’re a good fit.” 

Sakumo nodded and put Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji down as a team. Their families had a history of performing well together, and the three of them likely already knew how to work as a team. 

That left him with Sasuke, Heiwa, Shino, Sai, Hinata, and Kiba. 

“I wouldn’t recommend Hinata and Kiba,” Iruka said. “He’s a bit rowdy, but in a way that makes her shut down rather than speak up.” 

“And if we put Shino, Sai, and Hinata together, we might end up with a team that never speaks to each other,” Sakumo noted. “How is Sasuke with the other boys?” 

Iruka grimaced. “I don’t think he acknowledges that Shino even exists. I also don’t think that Shino particularly likes him--Sasuke can be a bit arrogant at times. He and Sai don’t get along, and Kiba has taken to challenging him to fights at every available opportunity.” 

Sakumo sighed and scanned the list again, as if that would reveal something to him. Two boys and a girl was the traditional setup, but maybe he could adjust that a little without the elders protesting too much. 

“How does Sasuke get along with the girls?” 

“With Heiwa and Hinata? I think he intimidates Hinata a bit, but not as badly as some of the other boys,” Iruka said. “And he and Heiwa respect each other, at least. Heiwa and Hinata also get along fairly well. Heiwa is a lot calmer and more mature than some of the other girls in that class, and those two often sit near each other in class.” 

Sakumo grinned. “And Sai, Shino, and Kiba?” 

“Like I said, Sai and Shino get along. Kiba picks fights with them, but he does that with everyone, and Sai and Shino have the confidence to make him back off easily.” 

“That settles it, then,” Sakumo said, and wrote down the three boys as a team, followed by Sasuke, Heiwa, and Hinata. 

“You’re putting an Uchiha, a Senju, and a Hyuuga together?” Iruka exclaimed. “The clans are going to have a fit.” 

“Then they can take it up with me later,” Sakumo said cheerfully. “Now, if you excuse me, I have teachers to assign and a grandson to congratulate.” 

***

The Academy classroom was a riot of noise as the students discussed their exam results, which had been posted out in the hallway, and congratulated each other on passing. 

“I was fourth from the bottom, so my mom was happy,” Shikamaru yawned. 

“It’s not like these rankings even really matter,” Ino sulked. “Who cares what grades we got in the Academy? Our jounin-sensei are what really matter in the future. I hope I don’t get some lame old man.” 

“These tests are bullshit!” Kiba declared. “I’d annihilate all of you in a fair fight, and you know it. 

“Unlikely,” Shino said. “Why? Because almost all of us have soundly defeated you at one point.” 

“Were your parents happy?” Naruto asked his friends. “Ji-chan bought me four bowls of ramen, and taught me the shadow clone jutsu after! It’s super badass.” 

“My parents were really happy,” Sakura said. “They didn’t really think I would do this well, when there are so many kids from famous clans in my class. They bought me a lot of books and new sealing equipment. Itachi-senpai came by too with some ninja equipment, things that he and his friends don’t use anymore. The Uchiha have really high quality equipment that’s hard to get if you aren’t part of the clan, and it’s really expensive to buy things that good at normal stores. I spent all night taking the Uchiha clan symbols off.” 

“My parents bought me new books and equipment as well,” Heiwa said. “We had a nice dinner. Or tried to, at least. Nawanuke can’t let anything be nice for too long.” 

The three of them turned to Minori, who gave them a thumbs-up. “Daddy and Papa both said congratulations! Papa said it was okay to be dead last because he was too, but Daddy said it was an excellent manipulation of the system and that he was proud of me. Oh, and look!” 

Minori placed a pouch on the table and opened it to reveal a few rows of vials. “What is it?” Sakura asked, leaning in to take a look. 

“Poison!” Minori declared. Sakura jumped back. “It was a present. It can kill a man in ten seconds!” 

“Uh, how about we put that away for now,” Naruto said, eyeing the little bottles nervously. They looked way too fragile to hold something that dangerous. 

“Don’t worry, they aren’t dangerous unless they get into your bloodstream,” Minori said. “I have an immunity built up to it, so it’ll only make me a little sick.” 

“How do you have an immunity to a deadly poison?” Naruto exclaimed. 

“Can you tell me how to do it?” Sakura asked. 

“Eh, I kind of had some help with it,” Minori said. 

The door opened before he could explain further. “Settle down,” Iruka said. “Shikamaru, wake up. You’re a genin now. In a moment, I’m going to announce your teams, and then your new teachers will pick you up for your meetings. But before that, I wanted to let you all know that I am incredibly proud of how all of you have grown these past few years. I’m certain that all of you will go on to do remarkable things. Now, I won’t keep blathering on. I’m sure all of you are anxious to hear your teams.” 

Naruto waited with baited breath. 

“Team Seven!” Iruka said. “Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Minori Hatake!” 

Naruto whooped in delight and threw his arms around Sakura and Minori. “We did it! We all got on the same team!” 

Iruka cleared his throat, and Sakura hushed him. “I’m glad you’re happy with your team, but please contain your celebrations or complaints until I’m finished. Team Eight! Sasuke Uchiha, Heiwa Senju, and Hinata Hyuuga.” 

Sasuke grunted. 

“What a lackluster response,” Naruto complained. 

“Quiet, Naruto. Team Nine! Shino Aburame, Sai, and Kiba Inuzuka!” 

“What?” Kiba complained. “Come on, sensei. I get stuck with these two weirdos? And not a single girl?” 

“You’re one to talk. . . dickless.” 

“What did you just call me? Get over here so I can cram that paint down your throat!”

“If you don’t like it, take it up with the Hokage,” Iruka snapped. “Team Ten! Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi!” 

“Ugh, why?” Ino wailed. “I wanted to be with Sasuke.”

“This was bound to happen,” Shikamaru said. 

“It’s nice to be with friends,” Choji said happily. 

“Now, your sensei will all be here shortly,” Iruka said. “Good luck!” 

The first sensei walked through the door. Naruto leaned forward to whisper to Heiwa, “Hey, isn’t that your brother?” 

“Yes. I suppose he requested a team,” Heiwa said. 

“I am Kogane Senju. I have been assigned Team Nine. We will continue our meeting elsewhere.” 

Kiba groaned as he followed his team out of the classroom. “Great, another weirdo.” 

The door opened again, this time to admit an even more familiar figure. “Daddy!” Minori exclaimed. “You didn’t tell me you requested a team!” 

Kakashi’s eye crinkled shut as he smiled. “Well, it wouldn't have been much of a surprise then, would it? Team Seven, with me. Ah, Team Eight, you had better come too.” 

“Why?” Sasuke asked. 

“You’re welcome to wait here if you want, but it’ll probably be an hour or three.” 

Sasuke grumbled under his breath, but all six genin followed Kakashi to the roof. When they finally got there, however, he was nowhere to be seen. 

“This had better not be a stupid prank,” Sasuke said. 

They all jumped as Kakashi appeared in a swirl of leaves, this time accompanied by a second person. “Sorry, sorry,” Obito said. “I had to help this old lady--well, never mind. Anyways, I’m the teacher for Team Eight. Now, let’s all introduce ourselves. Names, likes, dislikes, and dreams for the future. I’ll go first!” 

Obito cleared his throat. “My name is Obito Hatake. I like spending time with my family and cooking. I dislike arrogant jerks. Like this guy!” He elbowed Kakashi. “In the future, I want to see my son and students grow up to be awesome ninja! Okay, Kakashi, your turn.” 

“Hmm, let’s see. My name is Kakashi Hatake. Likes . . . I have those . . . dislikes . . . I have some of those too. My dreams for the future . . . are none of your business.” 

“Hey, that’s not a real introduction, Bakashi!” Obito protested. “Here, I’ll do it for you. He likes miso soup with eggplant, because he’s secretly an old man, and snakes. He dislikes people who don’t look any further than the surface, and people who abandon their friends. His dream for the future is to see Minori grow up happily!” 

Kakashi sighed and gazed sadly into the distance. Obito grinned and pointed at Minori. “Okay, teams, let’s go around the circle!” 

“My name is Minori Hatake! I like playing with my friends and training with my family. I dislike people who are mean. In the future I want to be a strong ninja, like my parents!” 

“My name is Sakura Haruno,” Sakura said. “I like reading and practicing fuinjutsu. I dislike . . . bullies. In the future, I want to develop new medical fuinjutsu.” 

“I’m Naruto Uzumaki,” Naruto said. “I like ramen, and training, and also practicing fuinjutsu. Um, I dislike . . . physics! And people who hurt others. In the future . . .” 

He thought for a minute. “In the future, I want to be an awesome fuinjutsu master, like Ji-chan!” 

“Excellent, all of you. Now, Team Eight,” Obito said, and pointed right at Heiwa. 

“My name is Heiwa Senju. I like studying history. I dislike immature people. In the future, I want to be Hokage.” Heiwa looked at them as if daring them to comment on her dream. 

“Awesome, high five!” Obito cheered, and held up his hand until Heiwa returned the gesture. “I bet you’ll make a great Hokage. Next?” 

“Um, my name is Hinata Hyuuga. I like . . . flowers. I dislike . . . loud people. My dream . . .” Hinata’s voice slowly descended into nothing, until all they could hear was vague mumbling. 

“How about you come here and whisper it in my ear?” Obito suggested. 

Hinata blushed, but came forward and whispered in his ear. Obito grinned at her. “That’s an amazing dream. We’ll work on it together, ‘kay? Now, last but not least.” 

“My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like tomatoes and training with my brother. I dislike people who don’t work hard. In the future I want to become the head of the Military Police and protect the village, like my father.” 

Naruto thought that Obito’s smile was a little sad now. “Those are all great dreams. And Kakashi and I are going to help you make them come true!” 

“As long as you pass the next test,” Kakashi said. 

They exploded into chaos. “We already passed!” Sasuke exclaimed. 

“You never mentioned another test!” Minori said. 

“If we fail do we go back to the Academy? I don’t wanna have to take the final again,” Naruto moaned. 

“Pipe down. Yes, if you fail, you go back to the Academy. The test will be held tomorrow morning. Team Seven, meet me at training ground eleven at seven o’clock on the dot.” 

“Team Eight, you’ll be meeting me at training ground six, same time.” 

Kakashi’s eye gleamed menacingly. “And don’t eat breakfast.” 

“We’re not allowed to eat breakfast? But that’s the most important meal of the day,” Sakura said. 

“Don’t be silly, of course you’re allowed to eat breakfast. You’ll probably throw it all up, but you can eat if you want to!” Obito said cheerfully. “Make sure to get lots of rest. We’ll see you in the morning. Minori, you’re spending the night with Naruto, by the way. No unfair advantages for anyone. Don’t forget the meeting time!” 

The two of them vanished before any of them could ask another question. 

Minori sulked. “They just want ‘alone time.’” 

“I’m going to train,” Sasuke said abruptly, before he ran off as well. 

Heiwa looked at Hinata. “Do you want to discuss possible plans for the test?” 

“O-oh, um, if you’re certain . . .” 

The two of them left together, and Team Seven was alone. 

Naruto sighed and stared up at the sky. “Geez, just when we thought we were done with all this testing crap. Any idea what it’s going to be, Minori?” 

“I don’t know. They never mentioned anything about a second test,” Minori said. “But I know one thing. Knowing Daddy and Papa, it’s going to be super weird.” 

***

The next morning, Naruto and Minori arrived at the training ground to find Sakura and Kakashi already waiting. “Sorry!” he called as they ran to join the other two. “Ji-chan was doing a super cool thing with fuinjutsu and I got distracted.” 

“Well, now that the other half of this team has deigned to join us, we can finally begin the test. I have here two bells.” Kakashi held up two small bells attached to strings, and then tied them to his belt. “If you get a bell, you pass.” 

Sakura’s eyes widened. “But there are only two bells. That means one of us has to fail!” 

“What? No way! We already passed, you can’t fail just one of us!” Naruto protested. 

“That’s not fair, Daddy!” 

“The life of a shinobi is often unfair.” Kakashi set a clock down on one of the upright logs in the training ground. “You have until this clock rings. Go.” 

Naruto ran from the training ground, heading in the same direction as Minori and Sakura. “This doesn’t make any sense,” Sakura said, as soon as they had all gathered in a circle. “All genin teams have one jounin and three genin. Even if one of them passes the chuunin exam or drops out, they add in another genin."

“Daddy likes tricks,” Minori agreed. “We’ve just gotta figure out what the trick is.” 

Naruto groaned. “This is one of those weird ‘underneath the underneath’ riddles, isn’t it.” He thought for a moment, and then grinned as he was struck by a thought. “Hey, he said we all had to have a bell, but he didn’t say it had to be an entire bell! Maybe we could split one of them in half, and share it.” 

“By that logic, we wouldn’t even need both bells,” Sakura said. “We could just get one and split it into three pieces.” 

“But then why even have two in the first place? Just as a weird trick?” Naruto said. 

They pondered this for a moment. 

“Maybe it’s for Daddy,” Minori said. “Because he’s part of the team too.” 

“So he has to have a bell too to pass!” Naruto exclaimed. “That makes sense . . . I think. So we just have to get one bell, right?” 

“We’ll have to work together to get it,” Minori said. “Whoever gets it should leave and figure out how to break it apart, and then the other two can keep distracting him.” 

“Alright, let’s do this! Team Seven!” Naruto cheered. 

They leapt from the cover of the trees together. Naruto called up a rain of shadow clones to cover them--he could easily make a bunch of them without getting tired, although it did kind of give him a headache if a bunch of them dispelled at once. Sakura and Minori both transformed into him and joined the horde of clones. 

Kakashi struck the moment the clones reached, easily dispelling two or three at once. “Poor tactics, Naruto,” he said. “Full frontal attacks are rarely effective, especially when your opponent is more powerful.” 

“They’re enough to distract you,” Naruto crowed, as he substituted with a clone, taking a hit that would dispel the clone but would only give him a nasty bruise, and kicked Kakashi in the face. Kakashi dodged to the side, easily avoiding Naruto’s kick, only to be tripped up when a clone--probably Minori or Sakura--stuck a leg into his path. Kakashi flickered away before he could trip, appearing a few feet away. Naruto made a few handsigns, summoning up more clones but mixing in water clones as well. 

A clone who was definitely Minori darted forward, sliding between Kakashi’s legs and striking at him from behind. Kakashi turned to defend himself, easily deflecting Minori’s blows. Naruto ran forward to get him from the other side, only for Kakashi to turn into a log as Naruto’s fist collided with him. 

“Dammit!” Naruto swore. 

“N-Nakkun, I don’t feel so good.” 

Naruto looked at Minori in surprise, and was shocked to see that Minori’s hands were covered in heavily bleeding cuts. Tiny shards of glass were embedded in the cuts, and there was a weird, green liquid coating the glass. With a burst of horror, Naruto recalled the poison Minori had been given as a gift. “Minori . . . is that . . .” 

“Kai!” 

Naruto blinked, and found himself staring into the face of a “clone” who could only be Sakura. “Uh, Sakura? What happened?” 

“Genjutsu,” Sakura said. “A pretty basic one; Itachi-senpai knows a lot of more complicated ones.” 

“Ugh, I suck at genjutsu,” Naruto muttered. “Where’s Kakashi-sensei?” 

“Minori is keeping him occupied,” Sakura said. 

“Okay, I’m going to join him. You sneak in and get a bell when you can. He can’t possibly pay attention to all three of us at once!” 

Sakura bit her lip, and then pulled a seal from her bag. “Here. I only have one, so I was saving it, but . . . use this if you have a chance. Get it as close to the bells as you can.” 

“Got it,” Naruto agreed. 

He ran off, and quickly found Minori and Kakashi exchanging blows. Kakashi wasn’t using the Mokuton at all, but was still easily fending off Minori’s attacks. Naruto dodged around them, substituting with clones when necessary, and hurled a handful of shuriken at Kakashi when he got close. 

Kakashi blocked them all easily, but he wasn’t expecting Naruto to substitute with one of them at the last minute, at the same time as Minori threw a trio of kunai. Kakashi moved the kunai to deflect the ones Minori had thrown, leaving the smallest of openings. Naruto grinned as he twisted himself in the air. He slapped down, getting the seal on Kakashi’s hip and activating it. 

Kakashi knocked him back moments later, and launched another attack. Nothing happened, and for a moment Naruto thought the seal hadn’t worked, until moments later Sakura slipped through the crowd of clones, reached for a bell . . . and Kakashi did nothing to stop her. 

She held it up triumphantly and ran off. 

“Minori?” Naruto asked, and jerked a head towards the direction Sakura had run. Minori nodded. 

Naruto summoned up another cloud of clones to disguise their retreat as they followed Sakura. She had hidden herself away in the forest, between the roots of a large tree, and was cutting at the bell with a kunai. 

“This thing is harder to break than it looks,” she grunted. 

“Lemme try,” Naruto said. Sakura handed him the bell and the kunai, and he set out trying to get it into three semi-even pieces. “What was that seal?” 

“Genjutsu seal,” Sakura said. “It makes you forget something is there, within a certain radius. He’ll probably notice soon, since it’s directly on him.” 

“You made him forget about the bells!” Naruto laughed. “Nice, Sakura.” 

“It wasn’t really me. Itachi-senpai developed it,” Sakura said. “I only helped with some of the formulas.” 

“Still, that was clever. Ah!” Minori gasped as the kunai made a jagged cut in the bell. “You’re doing it!” 

Naruto shouted in glee as he successfully cut through a section of the bell. It was closer to a fourth than a third, but he figured it was good enough. “One down, one to go.” 

The other two waited with baited breath as he stabbed and sawed at the bell until he had two more pieces. One he handed to Sakura, while the other he took for himself. “Yeah! We did it!” he cheered. 

“What on earth are you three doing?” 

All three of them turned their grins on Kakashi as they held out their pieces of the bell. “Look, we all have a bell!” Naruto declared. “So? Do we pass? Did we get it right?” 

Kakashi looked at them, looked at the bells, looked at them, and burst out laughing. 

“Hey, what’s so funny?” Naruto demanded. 

“Daddy, tell us if we got it right!” 

“Do we pass?” 

Kakashi wheezed. “Ah, hell . . . you pass. All three of you pass. There’s a solution I hadn’t thought of.” He cleared his throat. “So. What was your reasoning?” 

They exchanged glances. “Well, you never said we had to have an entire bell,” Minori said. 

“So we thought if we all had a piece of the bell, then that would work,” Sakura added tentatively. 

“Yeah! And we knew none of us could beat you alone, so we did it together,” Naruto said. 

Kakashi nodded. “Exactly. Alone, none of you could have beaten me. The point of this test is teamwork. The Academy teaches you that the Shinobi Rules are paramount. And those who break the rules are trash . . . but those who abandon their friends are worse than trash.” 

A shiver went down Naruto’s spine. 

Kakashi’s eye crinkled as he smiled. “Good job, my cute little students. We’ll have our first official team meeting tomorrow at nine o’clock. Don’t be afraid to eat breakfast this time. Oh, and Obito-sensei wanted me to tell you to come to Yakiniku-Q tonight at six for a celebratory team dinner.” 

***

When they arrived at Yakiniku-Q later that day, Kakashi was the only one there. He waved them over, so they sat with him and went over the menu. Over the next few minutes, Obito’s team slowly filtered in, until all seven of them were seated at the table. 

“Good, you’re all here,” Kakashi said. “Obito will be here soon; he usually isn’t too late for dinner. Go ahead and order whatever you want. While we wait, there is something we have to discuss. Now, all genin are required at attend basic first aid training. Your chakra control will be gauged to see if any of you have the potential to go on to more advanced training. Each team is required to have at least one member go on to advance training. Classes are usually held every afternoon, so let me know which days you sign up for, and I’ll schedule our missions around them. Obito will do the same for you three.” 

On cue, Obito burst through the doors. “Sorry, sorry, I went to the wrong restaurant by mistake, but then I’d already ordered and I had to wait for my food and get it to go and pay my bill. . . uh, we have leftovers for lunch tomorrow, by the way. What did I miss?” 

“I just explained the medical lessons,” Kakashi said. “Now, the next order of business: team meeting times. Team Seven will meet at 9 AM. Team Eight will also meet at that time, but you should expect Obito to arrive at least an hour and at most three hours after that. If he doesn’t show up within the hour, you’re welcome to join my team or train on your own. After a break for lunch, we’ll do a mission or two, and then you’re free for the day. Hmm . . . what else?” 

“Oh! Team pictures!” Obito said. “We’ll take them tomorrow, so make sure you look your best, okay? If you forget and look sloppy, your teammates will make fun of you forever.” 

“Obito would know,” Kakashi said. 

Obito cleared his throat. “Anyways, I think that’s about it! Now, let’s enjoy the food.” 

The genin eagerly tucked into the food, too busy enjoying the yakiniku to even bother with conversation. Minori made a valiant attempt at annoying Sasuke, but even he was in too much of a good mood to be annoyed. 

Once they were all full, Kakashi and Obito paid the bill and then bid them all goodbye. “They’re going to drink with the other genin sensei,” Minori said wisely. “Come on, we’ve got to prepare for the pictures tomorrow!” 

“Prepare?” Naruto said. “Don’t we just have to brush our hair or something?”

“You should put in more effort than that!” Sakura said. “Wear something nicer than normal training clothes.” 

“I have a better idea!” Minori said. “Since it’s a team photo, we should all get masks and put them on when Daddy isn’t looking.” 

“Ooh, a prank!” Naruto exclaimed. “Sasuke, your team’s gotta wear goggles, since Obito-sensei wears them!” 

“That’s stupid,” Sasuke said. “I’m not doing that.” 

“C’mon, you and Hinata have both got eye things, so it makes sense,” Naruto said. 

“So does he,” Sasuke said, jerking his head towards Minori. 

“Yeah, but he doesn’t have the Sharingan yet, and you do,” Naruto said. 

Sasuke looked a little pleased at this reminder. “I still think it’s stupid,” he said, but Naruto knew he had him on the ropes. 

“I think . . . it sounds fun,” Hinata said tentatively. 

“I guess it would be a tactical advantage if the enemy didn’t know when my Sharingan was active,” Sasuke admitted reluctantly.

Naruto didn’t punch the air, because if Sasuke saw he would definitely change his mind again. “Our team photo’s gonna be way better than yours!” he declared. 

Sasuke scowled. “Our team photo is going to be the best out of all of them.” 

“You’re going down!” 

“No, you are.” 

“You!” 

“No one is going to have the best team picture if we don’t get ready,” Sakura pointed out. “Let’s go shopping.” 

Sasuke and Naruto exchanged one last glare before going their separate ways with their teams. They had preparations to make.


	30. Chapter 30

Team Seven arrived at the location for the team photos bright and early, each one of them wearing a mask folded over and hidden beneath the collars of their shirts. Kakashi quickly gathered them together and ushered them towards the impatiently waiting photographer. 

“Okay,” the photographer said, once they had taken their places, the genin in the front and Kakashi in the back. “On the count of three, say ‘shinobi.’ One, two, three!” 

The three of them quickly pulled up their masks over their faces. “Shinobi!” 

The camera flashed. They pulled down the masks before Kakashi could see. The photographer waved them away, and they hurried away to the training ground, exchanging private grins all the while. On the way, they passed Sasuke and his team, escorted by Obito. 

“Hey, Kakashi-sensei, who else passed?” Naruto asked. 

“Ah, Kogane and Asuma both passed their teams. So, Teams Seven, Eight, Nine, and Ten,” Kakashi said. “But I wouldn’t worry too much about them. You’re going to have your hands full with your own training.” 

“What are we doing?” Sakura asked. 

“Oh, a little bit of everything,” Kakashi said vaguely. 

From then on, Kakashi put them through their paces, drilling them on everything from taijutsu to genjutsu to survival tactics. Every day they did some kind of teamwork exercise, usually against Obito’s team. They played a lot of capture the flag, although Kakashi and Obito always changed the rules each time they played so they never really knew what to expect. 

For the first week, all they did was train, making sure everyone knew the basic chakra control exercise and a few techniques that weren’t taught in the Academy but that Kakashi and Obito swore were useful in the field. And then, finally, after lunch one day, Kakashi announced that they were ready for their first mission. 

Naruto grinned all the way to the Hokage’s office. “I can’t wait! What’s it gonna be, what’s it gonna be? Something cool, right?” 

Heiwa opened her mouth as if to say something, only to close it again. 

“It’ll be super cool!” Obito laughed. 

Naruto and Minori both cheered. 

Naruto’s team was shown through first when they arrived at the Hokage’s office. Sakumo looked up with a smile as they entered. A young man who looked like an Uchiha grinned and gave them a little wave. 

“Team Seven, your first mission,” Sakumo said, and held out a scroll. 

Naruto eagerly grabbed it. His eyes quickly skimmed over the paper, absorbing all of the information in it, and his smile was replaced by a frown. “This is a joke, right?” 

Minori leaned in and peered at the scroll. “Painting a fence?” 

Sakura frowned. “This sounds more like a chore my parents would give me.” 

They looked up at Kakashi, who smiled down at them. “Welcome to the world of D-ranks! Your first mission is painting a fence. Be grateful you didn’t get Tora.” 

“Who’s Tora?” Naruto wondered. 

By the end of the third week of D-ranks, he wished he had never heard the name Tora. He’d hoped that the first mission was a prank, and that they’d move onto more interesting things, but no. After painting a fence, they had to go grocery shopping for some old lady. After that, they had to help a shopkeeper unpack several loads of goods. Then, they had to help clean up several different training grounds, and then weed a garden, and then babysit. The mundane tasks continued for days, until Naruto was sure he’d go crazy.

The worst mission, however, was Tora. 

Tora was the daimyo’s wife’s cat. On the surface, it didn’t sound like such a bad mission. It sounded like it could be interesting, even. They had to track down the cat and return it to the daimyo’s wife. Naruto didn’t count on the stupid cat being  _ possessed _ . 

By the time the cat was finally back in the clutches of the daimyo’s wife, Naruto was covered with scratches all the way up his arms. Sakura and Minori had fared slightly better, as they hadn’t been tasked with carrying the cat, but even they looked rather horrified by the experience. 

“Oooh, Hokage-sama, thank you,” the woman gushed. “These cute little genin saved my Tora!” 

“Any time,” Sakumo said. The woman continued to coo over her cat, and Sakumo turned his attention on Kakashi. “Another mission?” 

At Kakashi’s nod, the young Uchiha working in the Hokage’s office, who Naruto had learned was named Shisui, began to dig through a pile of scrolls. “I think someone just submitted a request for some genin!” 

“Can we have another mission? Like, a C-rank?” Naruto blurted. 

Sakumo stroked his chin. “A C-rank, hm? What do you think, Kakashi?” 

Kakashi nodded once. “They’re ready.” 

“Oh, I have just the thing!” the Daimyo’s wife exclaimed. “I’m traveling back to the Capital at the end of the week. I was going to request an escort, but my sweet little Tora going missing completely distracted me! Your cute little genin rescued him so promptly, I would love to have them for the job! And your own relatives on the team, too. Why, it’s just perfect!” 

“Of course, Madam Shijimi,” Sakumo said. “I’ll have a mission scroll written up immediately. When did you plan on leaving? And will it be just yourself, or your family?” 

Shisui pulled out a scroll and began to write. 

“Oh, just me, my husband, and my two daughters,” she said. “And Tora, of course. I wanted to leave early this Friday.” 

“How about ten in the morning?” Sakumo suggested. 

She giggled. “Why, that’s far too early! Noon would be much better.” 

“Noon it is,” Sakumo said amiably. “Do you anticipate any trouble? For instance, have your or any members of your family received any threats?” 

Naruto perked up at the suggestion; maybe they would get to do some actual fighting on this trip. 

His hopes were quickly dashed. 

“No, not at all!” she laughed. “And we aren’t traveling with any valuables. Why, we will be perfectly incognito!” 

Shisui approached with the scroll. “Does this look to be in order, Madam Shijimi?” 

Madam Shijimi glanced down at the scroll. “Why, that looks perfect! Our carriages will be waiting at the gates.” 

Sakumo dipped his head to her. “We appreciate your business, Madam Shijimi.” 

Still stroking her cat, Madam Shijimi left the room. Naruto made a face at her back as the door shut behind her. “Do we have to take a C-rank with her?” 

“She specifically requested your team,” Sakumo said, as he signed and stamped the scroll and handed it to Kakashi. “There you have it, your first C-rank!” 

It was with Madam Shijimi and her dumb cat, but at least it wasn’t another D-rank. Naruto grinned at Sakura and Minori as they left the room. As they passed the mission assignment desk, Naruto caught sight of Sasuke’s team waiting in line to turn in their mission. 

Obito waved at them cheerfully. “Hey! What were you up to?” 

“Tora,” Kakashi said. Obito shuddered. 

Sasuke’s eyes were glued to the scroll in Kakashi’s hand. “You got a C-rank?” 

“Yeah, but it’s just escorting Madam Shijimi and her husband and her dumb cat to the Capital,” Naruto said. “I hope we get attacked by bandits!” 

“You do realize that Madam Shijimi’s husband is the daimyo of our country,” Heiwa said. “Do you even understand the networking opportunity you’ve been handed?” 

“Networking? Like, making a net? For fishing?” 

Heiwa rolled her eyes and turned away. Naruto gave up with a shrug; Heiwa was pretty weird sometimes. 

Sasuke turned to glare at Obito. “We’re getting a C-rank.” 

“What?” Obito scratched at the back of his head. “Sure, if you want. Hinata, Heiwa, are you two down for a C-rank?” 

Heiwa nodded firmly, and after a moment, Hinata nodded as well. “Okay!” Obito declared. “Team Eight gets its first C-rank! Let’s go!” 

“Ah, Obito-sensei . . .” Hinata trailed off. 

“We have to turn in the old mission first,” Sasuke said bluntly. Judging by the paint on their hands and clothes, Naruto had an idea of what they’d had to do. 

Kakashi’s hand landed on his shoulder, nudging him along. “We’re taking up space. We aren’t getting a mission, so we should get out of the way. Now, I want all of you to go home and prepare for a C-rank. Tomorrow, show me what you packed, and I’ll let you know if you should add or leave anything. We will then have a briefing on what to do on a bodyguard mission such as this. Friday, we’ll meet at the gates an hour before the appointed time.” 

Sakura went off towards her own house, while Minori and Naruto walked together, discussing what they thought they should bring. Naruto, personally, was of the opinion that they should bring cup ramen. He’d tried one of Narumi’s ration bars once, and it was so disgusting he’d spat it out immediately. Minori, who didn’t actually like cup ramen, was wondering how many candy bars he could hide in his pack without Kakashi finding them. 

“You can’t survive on candy bars,” Naruto said. 

“Can too,” was Minori’s eloquent retort. 

They continued the debate until they parted ways to go to their own houses. Narumi was sitting on the veranda, squinting at a shogi board with Sakumo across from him. 

Naruto wandered up and leaned against the veranda. “Hey, jiji, weren’t you just in your office?” 

“I’m a shadow clone,” said the Sakumo at the board. “Ahah! Take that, Narumi.” 

Narumi sighed and leaned back. “You’re too good at this game.” 

“You’re just bad,” Sakumo said. “Shikaku beats me every time.” 

“That’s Shikaku. Everyone’s bad compared to him,” Narumi said. He turned to Naruto with a smile as Sakumo reset the board. “How was your day? You’re back earlier than normal.” 

“Yeah, we didn’t do a second D-rank today,” Naruto said. “We had Tora.” 

Narumi winced. “Ah.” 

“It was horrible!” Naruto declared. “But I guess that lady really liked us, because she asked us to escort her and her family back to the Capital for our first C-rank.” 

“Really? Escorting the daimyo’s family?” Narumi frowned thoughtfully. “Huh.” 

“What’s the matter? This isn’t a famously horrible C-rank, is it?” Naruto asked. 

“I don’t know. I’ve never done a mission like this.” Narumi looked at Sakumo. 

“It’s an odd assignment,” Sakumo said. “The daimyo usually has civilian guards traveling with him, and that tends to ward off any bandits, and two to four of the Twelve Guardians usually come with him to ward off any shinobi. Really, it’s unusual that they would even request a genin team—ah, but of course.” 

“What is it?” Naruto asked. 

Sakumo thought for a moment. “Well, I suppose it wouldn’t do any harm to tell you. The ranks of the Twelve Guardians were decimated recently. Ten of them were killed. One of the survivors is now the head monk of the Fire Temple, and the other returned to Konoha. You might know him as the sensei of some of your classmates, Asuma Sarutobi. The daimyo must not have hired their replacements yet.” 

Naruto grinned. “So we’re like, the temporary replacements for the Twelve Guardians? Awesome! This C-rank is way cooler than I thought! Hey, hey, is the daimyo gonna be attacked on the road?” 

“It has happened before, but it isn’t a frequent occurrence,” Sakumo said. “I wouldn’t get your hopes up.” 

“Still, the Twelve Guardians! Hehe, Sasuke’s gonna be so jealous when I tell him. I bet he’s got a super lame mission!” 

***

Sasuke was never going to tell Naruto what his team’s first C-rank was. Part of him wanted to go to Shisui and demand some favoritism just so they could get out of it. This was bound to be to the worst, most boring C-rank ever. 

The drunk old man took a swig of his alcohol and burped. He shot them a disdainful look. “These brats are the ones protecting me?” 

“I have the utmost confidence in my brats!” Obito declared cheerfully. 

They were protecting a bridge-builder. Even worse, a drunk, ornery bridge-builder. Meanwhile, Naruto and his team got to cozy up to the daimyo.

The old man took a swig of his drink again. 

Sasuke could tell already: this was one of those legendary horrible missions all his older relatives liked to talk about. Everyone had at least one, and this was looking to be his. Judging by Heiwa’s purposefully blank expression, she felt the same. Hinata, on the other hand, just looked nervous. Not that she ever looked anything  _ but  _ nervous. 

In Sasuke’s opinion, he had one-half of a good team. Heiwa was smart, strong, and capable, Obito was an idiot and a loudmouth, and Hinata was nervous and hesitant. She also refused to fight him properly. Everytime Obito paired them up for a spar, Hinata would stammer and make some half-hearted attempt at fighting him before letting him win. It infuriated him like nothing else. Just because she was the heiress of the Hyuuga clan, she thought that she could look down on him, that she didn’t need to bother really fighting him. 

“Alright, let’s get a move on!” Obito said. “We’re burning daylight.” 

If they were burning daylight, it was Obito’s fault; they had planned to meet up at noon, but the old man had been late by an hour, and Obito by two hours. 

Obito, as one of the two people in their group who actually knew how to get to Nami, led the way out of the village. Hinata and Heiwa took up positions on either side of the old man, and Sasuke followed behind, in the position where people would be least likely to try to talk to him. Obito was the only one to talk anyways, cheerfully questioning the old man all about his life and getting little more than irritated grunts in response. Sasuke did his best to tune them out. 

As soon as possible, he was going to take the chuunin exam and get off this team. 

“Okay, kids!” Obito said cheerfully. “Pop quiz! What’s the weather been for the past few days?” 

“Sunny and warm,” Heiwa said promptly. 

“Ding ding! So, question two! If it’s been sunny, why did we just pass a puddle?” 

They all stiffened. A blur of motion out of the corner of his eye sent Sasuke spinning around, just in time to see two shinobi leap out of the puddle, one of them jumping over their heads. A chain stretched out between them, wrapping around Obito. 

Obito’s eyes flashed red, a strange pattern showing in his eyes. Sasuke nearly dropped his kunai in surprise. He’d never seen Obito use the Sharingan before. He hadn’t thought that Obito even  _ had  _ the Sharingan. The clan elders had shaken their heads when they heard who his sensei was, lamenting that he had a teacher who hadn’t even managed to awaken his Sharingan. 

The chain pulled tight. 

Obito vanished. 

Sasuke blinked, and Obito stood behind another enemy shinobi, tanto gleaming with chakra. He thrust the blade through the enemy shinobi’s chest before the man could even turn around. “Protect Tazuna!” he yelled, before launching himself towards the other shinobi. 

Sasuke looked around to find that Heiwa had taken up a defensive position in front of Tazuna. Even Hinata had stepped forward to guard him. Neither of them so much as glanced at him as he joined them.

From his position, Sasuke couldn’t see what was going on with Obito. He heard the clash of metal of metal, occasional grunts or curses, and nothing else. 

A shout of pain lanced through the air, and Sasuke couldn’t help but turn around. Obito was gripping his arm, blood flowing from between his fingers. Sasuke stepped forward—he could take out the shinobi with a shuriken, he knew he could—only for Hinata’s hands to slam against his arm, pushing him to the ground. A split second later, a sword whizzed through the air, right where Sasuke had been only a moment before. 

A man stepped out from the trees. Bandages covered his face all the way up to his nose. He wore a headband, but it was turned to the side, so Sasuke couldn’t see what village he was from. His aura was so menacing Sasuke couldn’t help but lean back, and Hinata sank to her knees. Tazuna fell backwards completely, mouth agape. Even Heiwa’s legs were trembling, although she had locked her knees so she wouldn’t collapse. 

His menacing gaze landed on Sasuke. “Look alive, brat. Not paying attention is a good way to get yourself killed.” 

The man’s gaze moved past Sasuke. Sasuke followed his line of sight, and his eyes landed on the sword, speared through two more Kiri shinobi.

The man stepped forward. Sasuke tried to stand, or even just scoot backwards, but his body refused to move. Hinata, shakily, raised her kunai. The man stepped past them carelessly and pulled the sword free. 

Sasuke looked over his shoulder at the sound of footsteps, and saw that Obito had killed the remaining shinobi. His hand was still clamped over his bleeding arm, but he was standing. 

“Zabuza Momochi,” Obito said. “The Demon of the Mist.” 

Zabuza slung his sword over his shoulder. “You know me. I don’t know you.” 

Sasuke couldn’t help but stare as Obito let go of his arm and held out his hand to Zabuza. “Obito Uchiha, from Konoha.” He glanced down at his hand, covered in blood, and let it drop to his side. “Thanks for taking care of my genin.” 

“They shouldn’t be here,” Zabuza said. 

Obito grimaced. “Yeah, I know that now. Intel said this was only a C-rank. I didn’t expect Kiri to send shinobi after us.” 

“They’re invested in making sure that bridge never gets built,” Zabuza said. “Mei Terumi is invested in making sure it does.” 

“Thought so. You’re with the coup, aren’t you? I heard Uzushio was helping you guys out,” Obito said. “Well, the friend of my friend is my friend. Thanks for your help. We kind of got dropped in the deep end there.” 

“You should take your genin back to Konoha,” Zabuza said. “Stick to the kiddie pool.” 

“We’re not going back!” Sasuke snapped. 

Obito looked at them, surprised. “Uh, this is like, A-rank level stuff we’re dealing with. I have to take you back to Konoha.” 

“We’re not going,” Sasuke said. “I am  _ not  _ failing my first C-rank.” 

“You wouldn’t be failing it,” Obito said. “It’s more like it wouldn’t count. This is an A-rank mission, and trust me, you guys are not ready for an A-rank. We were lucky Zabuza was around to help us.” 

Sasuke scowled and looked towards his teammates; surely one of them would have some idea of how to get Obito to agree to let them continue the mission. 

Heiwa met his eyes and nodded once before speaking up. “Sensei, we want to help Tazuna. We shouldn’t abandon our comrades, right? Even if it is against the rules?” 

Obito ran a hand through his hair. “Aw, man. I’m gonna catch so much hell for this. Fine, we’ll do the mission. But I’m sending a message to Konoha the moment we arrive to let them know what’s up.” 

“Wouldn’t it be better to send a message now?” Heiwa asked. 

“Yeah, maybe. But, uh, we kind of have a more urgent issue to deal with. Anyone here know how to treat poison?” 

Obito wobbled, his eyes slipping closed, and fell without another word. Sasuke and Heiwa both started forwards, but Sasuke knew they wouldn’t catch him in time. 

A blur shot down from the trees, and in a heartbeat a figure stood between them and Obito, supporting Obito purely with his own strength. Slowly, the stranger lowered Obito to the ground. Sasuke couldn’t see his face due to the mask, but Zabuza didn’t seem alarmed and Sasuke couldn’t sense anything dangerous from the stranger. 

The figure examined Obito for a moment, then looked up. “I have the antidote, but he needs to be taken somewhere safe to recover.” 

“M-my house,” Tazuna said, speaking up for the first time since the fight. “You can stay at my house, all of you.” 

Zabuza nodded and stepped forward. The stranger poured something over Obito’s wounds and bandaged them, then stepped back, allowing Zabuza to hoist Obito up and over his shoulder. 

“Keep up,” he said, not even looking back at them. “I’m not here to babysit.” 

Sasuke scowled at the man’s back, almost missing Hinata stepping up to his side. 

“U-um, sorry I pushed you, Sasuke-kun . . . are you okay?” 

Sasuke glared at her and followed after Zabuza without a word.  He didn’t need Hinata’s pity. They would complete this mission, and then she’d know better than to look down on him. 

***

On Friday morning, Naruto met with his team at eleven in the morning. Minori and Kakashi were already there, as was Sakura. The daimyo’s family was nowhere to be seen. 

Noon came and went. Still, there was no sign of them. 

Two carriages finally rolled up to the gate when it was nearly one in the afternoon, not long after the genin had given up on standing and had started up a round of ‘The Daimyo is Late Because’ while they waited. 

They jumped up as the carriages approached, along with a small complement of guards, and an older man stepped out of the carriage. He didn’t look very impressive in Naruto’s opinion; he’d thought that the daimyo would look super rich and awesome, but this dude just had a kind of lame mustache. He and Kakashi exchanged some pleasantries that Naruto quickly tuned out, and then the daimyo got back into the carriage. 

Kakashi went to the front of the line, while the three genin went towards the back. Minori and Sakura took the sides, while Naruto took the very back. Between Kakashi and the genin, three guards went along each side of the line, with another guard riding on top of each carriage. 

Within three hours of their walk, Naruto was bored beyond belief. 

“Hey, Sakura,” he said, loud enough that she could hear but hopefully quietly enough that no one would overhear. “How long to the Capital?” 

“At this speed? About a day,” she said. “I don’t know if we’ll stop along the way, though.” 

Naruto groaned. “Really? Are we just going to keep walking like this all day? It’s so . . . boring.” 

“It is a little,” Sakura admitted. 

“We could keep playing a game,” Minori said. 

“I think Kakashi-sensei might get mad at us for that,” Sakura said.

“At least we wouldn’t be bored,” Naruto said. 

“Okay, I’ve got one! I spy, with my Sharingan eye, something . . . green!” 

Worst. Mission. Ever. 

***

“I spy something . . . blue.” 

“Ugh, blue again? The sky,” Naruto said. 

“Naruto’s shirt,” Minori suggested. 

Sakura sighed. “It was Naruto’s shirt.” 

“We’ve already done my shirt, like, five times,” Naruto said. 

“Well, there isn’t exactly a lot to choose from,” Sakura said. 

“I’m so bored,” Naruto groaned. 

Minori stared at the wagons. “Is it just me, or are we slowing down?” 

Sakura blinked. “You’re right, I think we are!” 

In a swirl of leaves, Kakashi appeared in front of them. “We’re taking a break, my cute little genin.” 

With groans of relief, all three of them sank to the ground. “Sensei, this mission is horrible,” Naruto said. “I thought bodyguard jobs were supposed to be interesting!” 

“They are when you actually get attacked,” Kakashi said. “Half the time, it’s just a lot of walking and watching. Don’t forget to stay alert, even if you’re bored. Letting your guard down is like welcoming an ambush.” 

“Yes, Kakashi-sensei,” they chorused. 

Kakashi dropped ration bars into their laps. “Eat up, we’ve got a long walk ahead of us.” 

Sakura took a bite and promptly spat it out. Minori grimaced, pinched his nose, and wolfed it down. Naruto squinted at it. 

“D’you think if I put a heating seal on my cup ramen and pour my canteen into it, it’ll boil the water?” he asked Sakura. 

Minori laughed. “Try it, try it!” 

“It sounds like a worthy experiment,” Sakura said. “I’ll take one too.” 

Naruto unsealed two cup ramen from his back, and he and Sakura poured their canteens into it. He didn’t have a heating seal ready, so they had to wait for him to draw two of them on spare sealing tags. 

He’d just finished the first one when a man with a sword launched himself at them from the trees, heading straight for Naruto. On reflex, Naruto smacked the seal against the man’s armor and activated it. The man shrieked, clawing at the metal. “Hot! Hot!” 

The civilian guards ran around the corner of the carriage, weapons drawn. They hesitated as they took in the sight of the man now desperately scrabbling at his armor, trying to remove it. Whatever they had intended to do, none of them had a chance to do it, as more bandits flooded out of the trees, engaging the guards. Several of them were quickly wrapped up with branches and yanked back into the forest, courtesy of Kakashi’s mokuton. 

Naruto didn’t have time to observe for long, as he was quickly engaged by yet another bandit, this one with dual blades. Sakura, at his back, was fighting a woman with a sword, while Minori was dealing with a young man with a dagger gleaming with poison. 

“Naruto! Duck!” 

Naruto dropped to the ground, kicking out at the bandit’s legs as he did, and a kunai with a seal attached sailed overhead. The bandit went down, and as he did, Naruto took the opportunity to grab a sleep seal from his pouch. 

“Minori!” 

Naruto glanced back briefly to see another seal sailed through the air. The swords swept towards him, and he jumped back. He needed to get in close to apply the sleep seal, but the bandit was determined to keep him away. A bandit, however, was no ninja. 

A surge of chakra was all it took to propel Naruto forward, seal at the ready. The bandit didn’t even have time to react before Naruto slammed the seal against his forehead and activated it. “Fuinjutsu!” the man gasped, before falling to the ground. 

“We have a fuinjutsu user!” a bandit yelled, running forwards to come to the defense of his friend. Naruto ducked under his blow and smacked a palm against his back, sending him stumbling forwards into the bandit Sakura had been fighting. The brief moment of confusion gave Sakura enough time to throw another seal behind her, dash to the center of the three seals she had thrown, and press her hands against the ground. In a flash of light, a barrier shaped like a three-sided pyramid rose around them. The bandits who had been running towards them, summoned by the yell of their companion, smacked against the wall and screamed in pain before falling to the ground, unconscious. 

Sakura winced. “It wasn’t supposed to do that.” 

“Great job, Sacchan!” Minori cheered as he exchanged blows with his bandit. 

“Yeah, but we’re kind of trapped inside now!” Naruto pointed out. 

“So?” Minori said. 

“So what if Kakashi-sensei needs our help?” Naruto said. 

“I think he’s got it,” Sakura said, motioning outside the barrier. Branches and roots whipped through the air, sending bandits flying. Naruto had to admit that Kakashi seemed to be in his element out there. 

The two bandits Naruto had pushed into each other finally righted themselves and stood back to back, facing off with Naruto and Sakura. Naruto was quickly swept into the fight, exchanging blows with the bandit. 

He reached into his bag for another seal and slapped it against the bandit he was fighting. Instead of putting the bandit to sleep, however, it exploded, tearing up the ground and blasting the bandit against the barrier. He dropped to the ground, unconscious, and Naruto flung himself forward to tackle the bandit Sakura had been attempting to take out. Sakura quickly followed up, slapping a seal against his forehead and knocking him out. 

A quiet gasp drew their attention to the fight, and Naruto turned around just in time to see Minori trip over a root, exposed by the explosion that had torn up the ground, and fall back. He kicked up at the bandit, face twisted in a wince as his foot connected with the bandit’s groin. 

The bandit howled and sank to his knees. Naruto was pretty sure he was going to be pissed off as soon as he recovered, so he quickly ran over to knock the guy out. 

“You okay, Minori?” he asked, turning around. 

Minori rubbed his ankle. “Ah, yeah, I’m okay. I think I hurt my ankle.” 

Naruto scratched his head. “Uh, what are we supposed to do for that again?” 

Sakura frowned at him. “You’d know if you paid attention in the first aid classes.” 

Naruto grinned, unrepentant. “But that’s what I have you two for!” 

Sakura sighed and shook her head as she knelt down next to Minori. “Here, I’ll wrap it for you, since Naruto over here is useless at first aid. It isn’t broken, is it?” 

“Just a sprain, I think!” Minori declared cheerfully. “It doesn’t even hurt that much.” 

They all looked up as Kakashi approached the barrier, an amused look in his eye. “Next time, I recommend putting the barrier around the clients, instead of yourselves.” 

Naruto laughed. “Yeah, that would’ve been a better idea.” 

Sakura blushed. “Sorry. I acted in the heat of the moment.” 

“You’ll get better with practice,” Kakashi said. “Now take this down. The daimyo is anxious to move on. Minori, can you walk?” 

As Sakura broke the barrier, Minori stood, still smiling cheerfully. “Yep!” 

Kakashi eyed him critically. “You’re not walking.” 

Without another word, he hoisted Minori up, opened the door of the carriage closest to them, and tossed Minori inside. “Sakura, Naruto, watch the back. And don’t let him escape,” Kakashi instructed before returning to the head of the line. 

Naruto sighed as they once again began to trudge along behind the carriages. “Now it’s going to be even more boring. Why couldn’t I have sprained an ankle? At least I wouldn’t have to walk.” 

“There’s nothing to stop you from tripping over a root,” Sakura pointed out. 

“Yeah, but if Kakashi knew I did it on purpose, he wouldn’t stick me in a carriage with Minori. He’d stick me with the daimyo and his wife,” Naruto said. 

Sakura shivered. “I think I’d rather keep walking.” 

“Yeah, so let’s not sprain our ankles,” Naruto said. “I’d rather not have to put up with Tora the cat in a confined space. But jeez, Minori is lucky. He doesn’t have to walk, and he gets to spend time with some princesses.” 

“Some people have all the luck.” Sakura sighed, and Naruto sighed along with her. 

***

Minori grinned at the girl across from him. “Hi! I’m Minori!” 

She sniffed delicately and pointedly looked away from him. Minori looked at the girl next to him, only for her to lower her eyes and stare at her lap. 

Minori resigned himself to a boring carriage ride without his friends. 

He made a few more attempts at conversation, but all of them were ignored until the girl across from him fell asleep. 

“My name is . . . Yuzuki.” 

Minori looked at the girl next to him, surprised. “Oh! I didn’t think you were going to talk to me.” 

“It isn’t proper for a princess to speak to a commoner,” Yuzuki said. “Onee-sama hardly even leaves the palace. However, as you are the grandchild of the Hokage, we are nearly peers. As such, you may address me as Yuzuki-sama, instead of hime-sama.” 

“Okay, Yuzuchii!” 

Minori laughed at the shocked expression on her face. This carriage ride was looking up. Although he still would have preferred to be with his friends. 

Yuzuki coughed delicately. “I must admit, Minori-san, that I do not know much about the shinobi world. I know that the Uchiha and the Senju founded the village, and that the current leader of the village is Sakumo Hatake, but I do not know much else. Are the Hatake a very large clan?” 

“Not at all,” Minori laughed, waving a hand. “It’s just me, my parents, and my grandfather. And you don’t have to speak so formally! We’re probably around the same age.” 

“I am thirteen years old,” Yuzuki said. 

“And I’m twelve! See, practically the same age,” Minori said. “You can just call me Minori.” 

“Very well . . . Minori.” Yuzuki blushed and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Is it interesting, being a shinobi? I assume you must have all sorts of stories.” 

“This is actually my first real mission,” Minori admitted. “Before we were doing D-ranks. Things like painting fences, finding lost pets, shopping for groceries, pulling weeds, that sort of thing.” 

Yuzuki’s eyes widened. “They make the grandchild of the Hokage do manual labor like a servant?” 

“Well, shinobi do serve the village! We do whatever’s necessary,” Minori said. “And no one treats me special just because I’m related to the Hokage.” 

“Really?” 

“Really really!” 

Yuzuki looked down at her lap. “That must be nice.” 

“I guess.” Minori hummed thoughtfully. “Hey, I don’t have a lot of stories of my own, but I have a bunch that my family told me, if you want to hear them.” 

“Do you . . . perhaps . . .” Yuzuki blushed again. “Do you have any about . . . handsome shinobi?” 

Minori grinned. “I’ll see what I can do.” 

For the rest of the ride, Minori filled her head with stories of the Yondaime, who Minori was pretty sure was the most handsome shinobi to ever exist. He only stopped when the carriage finally rattled to a halt. 

The door opened, and Naruto’s grinning face appeared. Minori grinned back automatically. “Hey, Nakkun!” 

“Yo! We brought food,” Naruto said, holding up a basket. He leaned in to whisper loudly to Minori. “Did you know they get real food? Totally not fair!” 

Minori grabbed the basket and opened it up, revealing an elegantly packed bento. It looked even better than the bento Obito made him, and that was saying something. “Thanks, Nakkun. How are things out there?” 

Naruto made a face. “Boring. And my feet hurt. Sakura and I are gonna try using a seal to make ramen again.” 

Minori waved him off. “Bye! I’ll let you know how good the bento is!” 

“Yeah, and I’m gonna kick your ass when we spar again!” Naruto retorted. Yuzuki gasped quietly. 

Minori stuck out his tongue and shut the door. “Sorry, Kakashi-sensei says that Nakkun ‘lacks any sense of tact.’ Here’s your food. Should we wake up your sister?” 

“Best not,” Yuzuki said. “She always gets sick on carriage rides, so I believe we are better off letting her sleep. You can share with me instead.” 

“Thanks,” Minori said, reaching over to help himself to a piece of sushi. The fish practically melted in his mouth. “Mm! Do you eat like this every day?” 

“Not usually,” Yuzuki said. “The cook at home is much better than the one in Konoha.” 

“You mean it’s better than this? Yuzuchii, remind me to visit you someday!” 

The door opened again. “Nakkun, I’m not giving you any of this bento,” Minori said, as he plucked a piece of fatty tuna out of the box. 

A hand grabbed his collar, snatching him out of the carriage. A second hand moved past him, grabbing Yuzuki and pulling her out as well. A hand pressed over his mouth, preventing him from calling out as he was tucked under someone’s arm and carried off into the forest. He could see the civilian guards eating their lunch, and Kakashi was speaking to someone in the daimyo’s carriage, but he couldn’t see Sakura or Naruto anywhere. 

His heart hammered in his chest—he had to do something.  One of his arms was free, the other pressed firmly between his body and the body of the man carrying him. He reached up just enough to remove his headband, letting it fall to the ground. 

Hopefully, that would be enough. 

***

“Naruto! Naruto, what are you doing?” 

Naruto stopped as a hand on elbow pulled him back. “Huh? Sakura? I thought—” 

He stopped; he’d had a reason for leaving the carriages and going deeper into the forest, but now he couldn’t have said what it was. He shook his head, trying to ignore the foreboding feeling inside him. “Nevermind. Let’s go back.” 

Sakura sighed, clearly exasperated. “You’re the one who suddenly went running off for no reason.” 

“Hehe, sorry,” Naruto said sheepishly. “C’mon, before Kakashi-sensei finds out and gets mad at us.” 

They hadn’t gone far from the carriages, at least. They only had to walk a few minutes before they could see them, and a few minutes more before they were next to the carriages again. 

Their two cups of ramen had been left on the ground next to the carriage, but one of them had been knocked over. Naruto knelt next to the one still standing and sulked as he poked at it with his chopsticks. “This sucks. It’s cold.” 

“Hey, Naruto? Could you take a look at this?” 

Naruto slurped up his mouthful of noodles. “Yeah?” 

Sakura was crouched next to the door to the carriage. “Here.” 

Naruto walked over and looked over her shoulder. There was a shoe imprint in the dirt. “So?” 

“These are shinobi sandal tracks, but they aren’t from any of us,” Sakura said. “They’re too big to be any of us, even Kakashi-sensei.” 

“Well, there’s probably lots of ninja who use this road,” Naruto said. He knocked a hand against the door. “Hey, Minori, did you see anyone come by?” 

There was no response. Frowning, Sakura stood and opened the door. Naruto glanced over her shoulder. 

The carriage was empty but for the older princess. Minori and the second princess were both gone. 

Naruto gulped, his mouth dry. “I think we’d better get Kakashi-sensei.” 

“What happened?” 

Without giving them a chance to answer, Kakashi peered into the carriage. “Is she unconscious, or just asleep?” 

“Asleep, I think,” Naruto said. “She was asleep when I brought in the lunch earlier.” 

Kakashi picked up a piece of sushi. “They were interrupted in the middle of eating. Did either of you see anyone?”

Sakura glanced at Naruto. Naruto gulped around the guilty lump in his throat. “It’s my fault. I wandered away from the carriage and Sakura went after me.” 

Kakashi’s eye landed on him. “Why?” 

“Why?” Again, Naruto tried to remember why, but it was a blur. “I . . . I dunno.” 

Kakashi nodded. “Genjutsu. Sakura, Naruto, stay here. One of you guard each carriage. I’ll be right back.” 

With that, Kakashi summoned a snake and walked into the forest, following the footprints leading from the carriage. Naruto sighed and leaned against the carriage door as Sakura scurried over to stand by the daimyo’s carriage. 

Kakashi was only gone for ten or fifteen minutes before he returned, holding a headband that could only be Minori’s. Naruto remembered him replacing the standard dark blue band with a purple one. 

“I have to make sure the daimyo gets to the Capital,” Kakashi said. “You two, go with Sage and look for Minori. I’ll join you soon. Don’t do anything until I get there unless Minori and the princess are in imminent danger, understand?” 

They both nodded. “Yes, Kakashi-sensei!” 

The snake twined around Naruto’s legs before slithering into this forest. “I ssssmell him . . . thisssss way . . .” 

As the carriages rattled off towards the capital, Naruto and Sakura raced through the forest after the snake. They didn’t encounter anyone, but they also didn’t see any more signs of Minori. They were completely reliant on the snake. 

Eventually, the snake led them to one of the many caves dotting the landscape, ones that Iwa ninja had used as hideouts during the war, Sakura told him as they lay on the ground in the shrubbery, watching the entrance to the cave. A single shinobi guarded the entrance. 

“And now we wait for Kakashi-sensei,” Sakura said. 


	31. Chapter 31

“Heiwa-chan, d-do you think Obito-sensei will wake up soon?” 

Sasuke attempted to tune out his teammates as they perched on the porch of Tazuna’s house, watching Zabuza practice with his sword. Tazuna’s daughter could be heard inside the house, preparing lunch for the entire group. He’d seen Tazuna’s son-in-law and grandson earlier in the morning, but they’d gone off to fish or something. Tazuna himself was drinking on the porch near them, evidently enjoying his last day off before going back to work on the bridge. Beyond the sliding door, Obito was still fast asleep; they’d arrived at Tazuna’s house the day before, but he still hadn’t woken up. 

Heiwa frowned. “I’m not sure. Minori might know. He’s more knowledgeable about poison than I am.” 

“O-oh. Um . . .” 

Sasuke stood before Hinata could gather her thoughts and continue speaking. Her hesitant way of speaking just rubbed him the wrong way. If she was going to say something, she should say it purposefully. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and stormed off into the forest before either of them could stop him. Not that they would. 

It was just his luck to get put on a team with the Senju princess and the Hyuuga heiress. Not to mention that everyone knew Obito hated the Uchiha. Sasuke had thought it was out of jealousy, back when he thought that Obito had never awakened the Sharingan. Now he didn’t know what to think. He wished that he could talk to Itachi about it, but he hadn’t seen Itachi since passing the graduation exam. 

Sasuke stepped into a clearing and found that he was no longer alone. A stranger sat in the middle of the clearing, picking herbs and placing them in a basket. If Sasuke had been less observant, he would have mistaken the stranger for a girl; he was prettier than Heiwa, although not as pretty as Hinata. 

“You’re that masked guy, right? The one with Zabuza?” 

The stranger looked up, a faint smile on his face. “That’s right. My name is Haku.” 

“Sasuke. What are you doing?” 

“I’m going to make a medicine to help your sensei,” Haku said. “Would you like to help me?” 

It wasn’t like he had anything better to do, other than practice techniques that Obito had already taught them, so Sasuke crouched down next to Haku and picked out the herbs according to Haku’s instructions. Thankfully, Haku wasn’t a talkative person, so they were able to work in silence. 

“You’re a genin, correct?” 

Sasuke took it back. Even Haku was talkative. “Yeah.” 

“May I ask why you decided to become a shinobi?” 

Sasuke wasn’t about to spill his life story to a stranger, especially not one from a different village. “Everyone in my family is.” 

Haku’s smile was faintly amused now, like he knew Sasuke was purposefully holding back and thought it was funny. Sasuke couldn’t help but scowl in return. 

“What?” he snapped. 

“Nothing. I was just wondering . . . if you had someone you wanted to protect,” Haku said. 

Sasuke would have thought that was obvious. “Tazuna, of course.” 

Haku laughed. “Not for a mission. Beyond the mission. What makes you train so hard that you have blisters all over your hands?” 

Sasuke glanced down at his hands; no one had ever mentioned his blisters and calluses, not even his mother. He shrugged in response. 

Haku picked up an herb and examined it. “When you have someone important to you--your family, your teammates, someone you want to protect--that’s when you’re truly strong.” 

“Someone to protect,” Sasuke echoed, under his breath. 

Who had his father been trying to protect? Their clan? The village? 

Had it made him stronger? Or weaker? 

A twig cracked. Sasuke jerked up to find Hinata hesitantly standing at the edge of the clearing. Under the gazes of both Sasuke and Haku, she took a step back. “U-um, Tsunami-san says that lunch is ready. . .” 

Without a word, Sasuke stood and walked past Hinata, returning to the house. Everyone else was already inside, gathered around the table, barring the grandson and son-in-law. Sasuke took a seat next to Heiwa, the most tolerable person there. The daughter hadn’t skimped on the meal, and the table was piled high with food for them to choose from. Sasuke chose to eat lightly; he intended on training after the meal, and he didn’t want to make himself sick. 

Hinata and Haku didn’t appear until a few minutes into the meal. Haku sat next to Zabuza, while Hinata, after a moment’s hesitation, sat next to Sasuke. 

“Your sensei should wake up soon,” Haku said. 

Sasuke nodded and continued his meal. 

Obito didn’t wake up during the meal or when Sasuke trained outside, sparring with Heiwa while Hinata practiced her clan’s techniques. Heiwa had a good command of water jutsu, so fighting her was a challenge with his fire jutsu. He was better at taijutsu and shurikenjutsu than her, however, so they were on mostly even footing, even if being right next to the water did give her an advantage. 

He noticed Haku observing them at first, only to later see Haku practicing with Hinata. He wouldn’t really call what they were doing sparring; they were moving far too slowly for that. He couldn’t pay attention for long, however, as Heiwa sent a whip of water towards him. 

Tazuna’s grandson and son-in-law appeared towards the evening, laden down with fish that made an appearance during dinner. Sasuke dug into his food, hungry from the afternoon of training. He almost didn’t notice the slow footsteps that approached the table in the middle of the meal. 

He looked up as Obito sank to the ground with a faint groan. “I’m starving. How long was I out?” 

“A few days,” Haku said. “How are you feeling?” 

“Out of it, but better than I was,” Obito said as he served himself a heaping bowl of rice. “Thanks for the save! Hope my genin haven’t been too much trouble.” 

Haku smiled at Hinata, who blushed and looked away. “You have very diligent students.” 

“They’re the best!” Obito agreed, with his usual grin. Sasuke knew he was lying; no one was that enthusiastic about having genin students. Kakashi seemed to regard them as kind of a pain, which Sasuke found much more believable. 

Obito downed his rice so quickly you would think it was soup. “Ah! That hits the spot. Anyways, anything from Kiri?” 

“Not yet. They are most likely regrouping now that they know Zabuza-sama is involved,” Haku said. 

“I have to send word to Konoha about what’s going on,” Obito said. “They might send some backup.” 

“We are expecting support as well,” Haku said. “The Uzukage has devoted several ANBU to the cause.” 

Zabuza stood and made to leave. “Just don’t get in our way.” 

Obito watched him go. “So that’s one of the Seven Swordsmen, huh?” 

“I thought his sword looked familiar,” Heiwa said. “I read about them in a book, once.” 

‘Wonder if he’d be down to spar,” Obito mused. “‘Course, I’d want to be in top shape first.” 

With that, he devoured his fish and vegetables, and finished it off by gulping down his soup. “Whew! I’m heading back to bed. Don’t stay up too late, kids. We’re starting this mission for real in the morning.” 

***

Minori had to wonder if their captors were stupid. 

First, they’d only tied up Minori with a simple rope, which he could easily escape from. Second, they’d only posted two guards in front of the area of the cave where Minori and Yuzuki were being held. Third, these guards weren’t even trying to prevent Minori from listening in on their gossip. 

“Heard anything from the boss?” the first asked. 

“Not today. Why?” 

“No reason. Just wanted to know when we’re getting paid.” 

“We get paid as soon as the daimyo coughs up the ransom, dumbass.” 

“I know that. But are we actually getting paid, or are we going to get shafted for some bullshit ‘expenses’ again?” 

“We better not, or the boss being some fancy shinobi won’t stop me from giving him a piece of my mind.” 

“Speaking of which, what’re they doing about those shinobi guarding the daimyo?” 

“They sent some people to slow them down.” 

“Really? Konoha shinobi?” 

“It’s one old man and a couple kids. What’re they going to do? Sounds like a fun job if you ask me.” 

“I’d definitely rather fight than do this. Why do we get stuck guarding some princesses?” the first groaned. 

And there it was, the fourth reason why Minori was certain they were complete idiots: they hadn’t even noticed he was a shinobi. 

Yuzuki leaned in to whisper to him; he could feel her trembling against him, but her face didn’t show it. “Minori-san, these men seem to be under the impression that you are a princess.” 

“I noticed.” Minori said, puffing out his cheeks in an exaggerated pout to try to make her laugh. “I don’t look that girly, do I? They’re insulting my manly pride!” 

Yuzuki stared at him for a moment, and then a pink blush spread across her cheeks. “Ah--forgive me. I, too, was under the impression that you were a girl. I hope I have not insulted your manly pride.” 

Minori laughed. “I was joking! Don’t worry about that.” 

“I must confess, I am more worried about what we are going to do,” Yuzuki said. 

“I told you, you don’t have to speak so formally to me. And I’m not sure, either. I don’t know how many people are in the cave,” Minori said. “It might be just these two, but there might be shinobi here, too. My ankle is hurt, too, so we should probably wait for my team.” 

“You have a great deal of confidence in them,” Yuzuki said. 

“Of course. They’re my friends,” Minori said. 

Yuzuki nodded. “I have friends as well--I mean, I have friends too.” She giggled. “Although, I would not--wouldn’t--speak so casually in front of them. Rather than friends, they’re more . . . associates due to family ties. Most of them are noble children who spend time with me because my father is the daimyo. You’re quite lucky to be treated just like anyone else, rather than the grandchild of the Hokage.” 

Minori grinned at her. “You just have to wait to meet the right people! Nakkun and Sacchan have been my best friends since we started school together. I have another friend too, but she’s more like a big sister, I guess? Anyways, you’ll find real friends too, I’m sure of it.” 

“It’s different for you,” Yuzuki said. “Not being treated like you’re special. I’m not even allowed to dress myself in the mornings. My maids do everything for me, from selecting my shoes to doing my hair. No one would speak to me if not for the hope of someday getting a favor from me or my parents. No one even calls me by name. They speak to the princess, not to Yuzuki.” 

Minori stared at his toes. 

His mouth moved, unbidden. 

“I lied.” 

The corners of his mouth had fallen as Yuzuki spoke; Minori quickly turned them up again. “People do treat me like I’m special. They call me honorable grandson because I’m related to the Hokage, but not because they respect me. A lot of people don’t like me,” Minori said with a laugh. “It’s kind of funny how some people fall over themselves to talk to me because of something silly like who my grandfather is, right? And a lot of people in school would talk to me even though they didn’t like me, either. So, we’re the same! And since I have real friends, I’m sure you’ll find them too. I mean, you already have one! Right, Yuzuki?” 

Yuzuki’s eyes watered. She blinked a few times to hold back the tears. “Thank you, Minori.” 

“No need to thank me! We’re friends,” Minori said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Yuzuki leaned against him slightly. 

They stared like that for a moment before Yuzuki stared at him, eyes wide. “Minori?” 

“Yeah?” 

“How did you get out of the ropes?” 

“What, those things?” Minori laughed. “It takes more than that to tie up a ninja! Ah, but I can’t get them back on again, so that might be a problem.” 

“Why is that?” Yuzuki asked. 

One of the guards glanced back, his eyes skimming over the two of them, before turning back around. He stood there for a few minutes, idly tapping his foot, and then whirled around. 

“Hey, how’d you get untied?” he demanded. 

The other jumped and turned as well. “What? Quick, tie her back up! Before someone comes along and we get in trouble!” 

Footsteps echoed through the cave, and the two of them stiffened. “What seems to be the problem?” a man asked as he joined them. 

Minori took a moment to observe him. He was a missing-nin, evidently from Konoha judging by his headband. He wasn’t wearing anything resembling the standard uniform, so he likely hadn’t gone rogue recently, but the weapons pouches around his waist and thigh seemed to be full. 

The man likewise observed Minori for a few moments before cuffing the two guards upside the head. “You idiots! I told you to grab the princesses!” 

“We did, bro!” 

“That’s not a princess! That’s a shinobi, dumbasses!” 

Minori grinned at Yuzuki. “That’s why it might be a problem.” 

Yuzuki’s eyes widened, her mouth falling open. Minori spun around, pulling a kunai from his pocket, just in time to block a blow from the missing-nin. 

Yuzuki’s shriek rang through the cave. 

“Don’t worry, Yuzuchii!” Minori said, making sure to keep the cheer in his voice. “I can handle these guys, no problem.” 

The missing-nin snarled. “We’ll see if you’re still so cocky when your head’s rolling on the floor, brat!” 

He slashed forwards; Minori ducked around him and moved closer to the entrance, away from Yuzuki. He kept smiling as the missing-nin turned around and advanced on him, aware of Yuzuki’s eyes on him. His eyes itched, but he didn’t dare let the discomfort show on his face, not with Yuzuki watching. 

He wouldn’t let her be afraid. 

***

A root was digging into Naruto’s stomach. He shifted to the side, only for a rock to poke into his ribcage. 

Sakura elbowed him. “Quit moving, Naruto. The guard is looking this way.” 

“How long is Kakashi-sensei going to take?” Naruto whispered. “It’s been forever!” 

“It has been a long time,” Sakura admitted. “I hope everything is okay.” 

“I’m sure it’s fine. Kakashi-sensei is super strong,” Naruto said. 

A shriek resounded through the air. The guard turned and ran into the cave, and without a second thought, Naruto jumped up and ran after him, Sakura hot on his heels. 

“Kakashi-sensei said to wait!” she yelled. 

“I don’t think we have time to wait anymore, Sakura!” Naruto said. 

They skidded into the cave, coming to an abrupt halt as they noticed the guard still standing just inside, peering deeper into the cave. Naruto’s foot collided with a pebble, kicking it against the wall, and the guard turned around. He reached for his sword as he spotted them and ran forwards. Naruto grabbed a kunai and braced himself, but the man ran right past him and vanished into the forest. 

When he glanced at Sakura, her hands were still forming a seal. “Thanks,” he said. 

She gave him a terse smile. “No problem. We should hurry.” 

They walked through the cave together until they reached a fork in the path. Naruto summoned a clone, which accompanied Sakura down one path while he went the other way. As Naruto ran deeper into the cave, the sounds of fighting soon became apparent. He put on a surge of speed, eventually running straight into another guard. The man went down like a ton of bricks, and Naruto rolled back to his feet to take in what was going on. 

Minori was fighting two men at once, ducking and weaving around them, maneuvering so that they got in each other’s ways. Naruto took a step forward, only to stop, recognizing the shine of ninja wire. He squinted into the room, and saw various wires attached to kunai criss-crossing through the room, primarily at the entrance and towards the back of the cave, where the princess was watching the fight with wide eyes. The center of the room, where Minori was fighting, was clear of wire.

He took a couple steps back and then ran forward, boosting himself with chakra as he leapt through the air. He landed on the back of the guard fighting Minori, and knocked him out with the blunt end of a kunai while the guard was still trying to shake him off. 

“Hey, Nakkun!” Minori said, cheerful as ever. “Glad you could make it!” 

Naruto launched himself into the fight, so that the man was fighting both of them at once. “You seem to be okay! We were gonna wait for Kakashi-sensei, but we ran in when we heard a scream.” 

“That was Yuzuchii. Don’t worry, we’re both fine,” Minori said, as he ducked beneath the shinobi’s kunai. Naruto jumped back, avoiding a sudden sinkhole of mud that appeared beneath him. “Wanna take him out together?” 

“You bet!” 

Minori jumped back, formed a seal, and blew out a massive ball of fire. The missing-nin jumped back, towards the entrance. Naruto hurled out a series of kunai with seals attached to them. They wouldn’t do anything more than blow out smoke if he activated them, but the missing-nin didn’t know that and jumped back yet again. Minori whipped a senbon towards him, and the man again darted back to avoid it.

The missing-nin’s eyes widened as, mid-step, he ran into the wire and his legs went out from under him. Naruto ran forwards and slapped a seal to him before he could stand up. An instant later, the missing-nin was unconscious. 

“Nice!” Minori said, holding up his hand. 

Naruto smacked his hand against Minori’s. “We should get Sakura.” 

“Yeah! Let me just untie Yuzuchii and clean up all this wire.” 

Naruto started to tie up the three men they’d knocked out, only to pause as memories rushed into his head with the dispersal of his clone. The clone and Sakura had gone down the other path--found a few store rooms, a few bedrooms, and then-- 

_ Sakura _ . 

Naruto dashed from the room, nearly tripping over the wire in front of the entrance. He smacked into the opposite wall, scraping his arm, and pushed off down the hallway. Minori’s voice echoed through the cave, calling after him, but Naruto didn’t stop. 

He passed the store rooms, the bedrooms, and finally reached the room where the clone had dispersed. 

Sakura was sitting in the middle of the room, not moving, heedless of the kunai at her throat. She was looking directly in Naruto’s direction, but her eyes were blank. 

“Now, tell me . . .” the woman holding the kunai said, only to trail off as Naruto burst into the room. She smirked. “Oh, look, a dashing prince comes running to your rescue. Pathetic. It’s weak little girls like you, pretending to be kunoichi . . . that really make me  _ sick _ .” 

She drew the kunai across Sakura’s throat. Blood spurted from the wound, spattering across the ground. 

The kunai released her grip on Sakura.

Sakura slumped to the ground, motionless and pale. Her blood seeped across the floor. Naruto breathed in sharply, and smelled the tang of iron. 

He sank to his knees beside her body and shook her shoulder. “H-hey, Sakura. Get up. C’mon, Sakura.” 

“She’s dead,” said a dispassionate voice. “Are you a shinobi or not? Quite crying.” 

He was crying, Naruto realized, hot tears pouring down his cheeks. 

“You’re as pathetic as she was. I might as well put you out of your misery, too.” 

Naruto’s hands clenched on Sakura’s shoulder. “Stop saying that . . . Sakura isn’t pathetic.” 

“She was a pathetic little girl who didn’t deserve to be a kunoichi, so I killed her. And now I’ll kill you.” 

Rage boiled up in his stomach, like nothing he’d felt before. Naruto stood, still staring down at Sakura’s body. “She’s my friend . . . don’t you dare say she’s pathetic, you bastard.” 

“Friendship? Don’t make me laugh. There’s no room for friendship in the life of a shinobi. It’s kill or be killed, and she got killed.” 

A boot kicked Sakura, hard enough that her body rolled over and landed against Naruto’s boods. Red filled his vision as he looked up into the face of the woman who had killed Sakura. 

Naruto drew back his fist and snarled at her arrogant, sneering face. He wanted nothing more than to wipe that smirk off her face--

No. No, that wasn’t good enough. The fury inside of him screamed for more. 

His nails bit into the palm of his hand as he clenched his fist. 

The woman’s smirk grew. “Oh? So you’re actually getting fired up now. This might be fun.” 

_ Fun.  _ She thought that it was  _ fun.  _ She’d killed Sakura for  _ fun.  _

The rage exploded out of him like an inferno, burning up everything inside him until there was nothing left but the desire to  _ destroy _ . 

Heedless of everything but the kunoichi in front of him, Naruto lunged forward, a scream tearing itself out of his mouth. “I’ll kill you, you bastard!” 

***

Kakashi had just found the cave his snakes had told him about when he felt it, strong enough to make his knees tremble like he was fourteen years old again. 

Pure, unadulterated rage, so intense that he could feel it in the air. 

“The Kyuubi,” he gasped, putting on an extra burst of speed. 

He nearly ran right into Minori, escaping from the cave with the princess. “Daddy!” Minori exclaimed, releasing his hold on the princess and throwing his arms around Kakashi. 

Kakashi quickly checked him over for injuries, but didn’t relax even when he found none. “Minori, what happened?” 

“I-I dunno,” Minori said. “I, Naruto came and helped me and Yuzuchii get out, but then he ran off, I think to find Sakura? And I was taking Yuzuchii out of the cave when we felt . . .” 

Kakashi patted his head. “You did well. Get the princess out of here. I left the carriage on the road.” 

Minori nodded and, taking the princess’ hand, led the way back to the road. Kakashi left them and ran inside, towards the source of the chakra choking the air. 

He found Sakura first, backed up against the wall, staring into a room with wide eyes. She didn’t tear her eyes away from the scene until he grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him. 

“Sakura, what happened?” he demanded. 

“S-sensei,” she said, her eyes creeping back towards the room. He shook her, and her eyes snapped back to him. “I . . . I was captured, so I used a genjutsu Itachi-senpai taught me to escape, but Naruto got caught in it too, I think, and then . . . he was so angry, and then . . .” 

Her shoulder shook under his hand. “I understand. Get out of here. Minori took the princess back to the carriage. Join them. Now!” 

Shakily, Sakura started down the cave, eventually breaking into a slow run. As soon as she was out of sight, Kakashi took a deep breath and turned to the room. 

Naruto was inside the room--although, Kakashi told himself, it wasn’t really Naruto. The thick, boiling chakra around him belonged to the Kyuubi, leaking out of the seal. Naruto wouldn’t have kept fighting even after his opponent was unconscious, bashing her face in without a care for how she might end up. 

Kakashi slowly breathed out and formed a seal with his hands. “Mokuton.” 

Branches of wood burst through the ground, wrapping around Naruto until he was completely hidden from view in a wooden dome. Kakashi waited, suppressing the Kyuubi’s chakra until it had completely faded away.

He retracted the dome around Naruto, revealing him slumped on the ground over the woman he had been fighting. Slowly, Kakashi stepped forward and lifted Naruto into his arms. 

Naruto didn’t stir until Kakashi had exited the cave. He blinked, squinting against the sun. “Kakashi-sensei? Sakura . . .” 

“Is fine,” Kakashi said. “Her genjutsu got out of hand, and you were caught in it. She’s with Minori right now, completely unhurt.” 

A small smile crossed his face. “Good . . . I’m glad.” 

Naruto went limp. Kakashi sighed and kept walking, heading back to the road where Sakura and Minori. “Honestly, these kids. They’re going to be the death of me.” 

When he reached the road, Minori and Sakura were both waiting in front of the carriage. Minori was anxiously tapping his feet against the ground, and Sakura was pacing back and forth, chewing on her fingernails. They both ran to him as he approached. 

“Is Naruto okay?” Sakura asked. 

“He’s fine,” Kakashi said. “Just exhausted. He’ll wake up after he gets some rest.” 

Minori bit his lip. “What was that, in the cave?” 

“Not here. You can ask Naruto about it when we’re back in the village,” Kakashi said, eyeing them sternly until they nodded. “Now, get in the carriage, all of you. We’re going back to the Capital.” 


	32. Chapter 32

Work on the bridge was coming along nicely. It seemed like most people in the village had a hand in its construction, from young children running errands to the old men instructing the younger ones on how to properly put the materials together. Part of Heiwa knew that the bridge would be a nightmare to defend in the case of an attack, but all the same it was impressive to watch. 

And the view, of course, was beautiful. Blue ocean as far as the eye could see, with islands dotted along the horizon. Obito had pointed out Uzushio to her when they first arrived on the bridge, before he had taken up his position at one end of the bridge. Zabuza had the other end of the bridge, leaving Heiwa with the center. Hinata, Sasuke, and Haku had remained at the house, in case someone attacked Tazuna’s family to get leverage over him. 

A whistle pierced the air. “Break for lunch, everyone!” Tazuna yelled. The workers set down their equipment and construction materials, streaming off the bridge as they headed home. 

Obito, grinning, wandered up to her and tossed her a box. Heiwa caught it and opened it to reveal a large lunch, with fresh fish the likes of which was hard to find in Konoha. “Lunch from the villagers again! They sure are generous. Tazuna’s even offered to increase the pay to A-rank, although it wasn’t really his fault that it ended up being higher than expected. It’s not every day that you end up getting roped into a coup!” 

“Why is there a coup in Kiri?” Heiwa asked, a question she had been wondering ever since they had crossed paths with Haku and Zabuza. 

“It’s a bit of a long story,” Obito said. “But there’s been a lot of bloodshed there, going back decades. I mean, their Academy graduation involves a fight to the death. Zabuza over there killed his entire graduating class. Recently, there were a bunch of bloodline purges, killing off families with bloodline limits like the Sharingan or the Byakugan. Haku’s from one of those families, I think.” 

Heiwa suppressed a frown. “I know,” she said tersely. She’d seen Haku use his ice the day before and had asked him how he did it. He’d told her it was a mix of water and wind chakra, only to go on to tell her it was a bloodline limit. He hadn’t actually done anything to learn it; he’d been born with it. 

“Anyways, a lot of people from Kiri aren’t happy with how things are being run, so they split, and gathered under Mei Terumi. Uzushio isn’t any fonder of Kiri than they are, so the Uzukage gave them a little island to use as a base and loaned them a bunch of shinobi. And Nami is spending a lot of money to fund the coup, so naturally Kiri wants to keep them from growing any more powerful,” Obito said. “This bridge is going to open up a lot of trade with the mainland.” 

“Nami is already one of the richest countries in the world,” Heiwa said. “Would the bridge really add that much?” 

“Sure it would! It would be a lot easier for people without boats to come here. Pretty much every merchant in Nami has a boat, but most of those on the mainland don’t,” Obito said. “It’s all about opening up new avenues of trade. Not to mention, Nami is a beautiful place. They might be hoping to break into the tourism industry.” 

Heiwa looked back to the ocean, but couldn’t see anything; a thick mist had risen from the sea, blocking her view of anything but vague shapes. 

Obito went still. “Heiwa,” he said. “Stay alert. This fog isn’t natural.” 

“Shouldn’t you go to the other end of the bridge?” she asked. 

“The real me is already there—I’m a clone,” Obito said. 

Heiwa drew a kunai and peered into the fog, still seeing nothing except vague shapes. She jerked back reflexively as something shot through the air, landing behind her with a clatter. She turned to see an exploding seal attached to a kunai. The clone darted forwards before she could react, grabbing the kunai and hurling it back out, over the bridge. It exploded in mid-hair in a wave of heat that forced her to step back. 

More kunai flew through the air, each of them bearing an exploding seal. 

“Heiwa, water!”

Heiwa’s hands flew through the seals for the biggest water-jutsu she knew, a wave of water that crashed over the bridge and swept the seals away before they could explode. It left her gasping for breath—she wasn’t used to using so much chakra all at once—but Obito gave her a thumbs up before exploding into a puff of smoke. 

A single kunai with an exploding seal lay on the ground where Obito had been standing. 

The blast knocked her off her feet, throwing her backwards and slamming her against a pile of steel beams. Dazed, she lay there for a moment, only barely managing to throw herself out of the way as a sword stabbed exactly where she had been. 

Heiwa rolled to her feet, ignoring the painful stinging of the burns and scrapes covering her body. A sharp-toothed swordswoman sneered at Heiwa as she twirled a blade through the air. 

“Look who we have here. A lost genin, all alone. Gonna cry for your sensei, little girl?” 

Sounds of battle resounded from either side of the bridge; like it or not, Heiwa was alone. She gritted her teeth and drew a kunai; the skin had been scraped away from her knuckles and blood dripped down her fingers, but she ignored it. “I don’t need my sensei. I’ll take you out myself.” 

The swordswoman let out a harsh, shrill laugh. “You will, will you? I’d like to see you try.” 

She launched herself at Heiwa without another word. Heiwa barely managed to bring up her kunai in time; wet with blood, the kunai slipped from her hand with the force of the blow. Heiwa dodged back and ducked under swipes of the sword as the swordswoman cackled. 

Forming seals made her hands ache, but Heiwa forced herself through it. Water whipped through the air, smacking the swordswoman away. She didn’t go far, through, easily flipping over and landing on her feet. 

The swordswoman laughed. “Using water jutsu on someone from Kiri? That’s a laugh. I’ve seen Academy students use stronger jutsu than that. Konoha really is a joke these days. I’ll show you how a shinobi really fights!” 

Heiwa barely had enough time to pull out another kunai before the swordswoman was on top of her, sword flashing through the air like lightning. Each blow seemed just a little bit faster; already, Heiwa was barely able to block them in time. She didn’t even have time to try an earth jutsu; whenever she jumped away, the woman flashed forwards before Heiwa could even finish a single seal. 

If she survived this, she was making it a priority to learn how to do techniques with only a single seal. 

The sword slashed down towards her, and Heiwa quickly brought up her kunai. The sword slid along the blade of the kunai, slashing into her forearms. Heiwa grit her teeth and forced her arms to stay up, only for a boot to collide with her stomach and toss her away. Her back smacked against the wall of the bridge, leaving her breathless. 

She pushed against the ground, struggling to stand, only for a boot to land on her chest and force her back down. 

“Not even a challenge,” the woman sighed as she brought up her sword. 

The tip pointed down at Heiwa’s neck. 

A faint breeze drifted through her hair. 

Heiwa didn’t dare close her eyes—didn’t dare look away—even as the woman brought down the sword. 

A black blur flew through the air and collided with the woman. Heiwa blinked, wondering if she was seeing things, but the black shape was still standing in front of her, while the swordswoman had been tossed against a pile of steel beams. 

The figure turned, and Heiwa realized it was the Uchiha who worked in the Hokage’s office—Shisui, the young man who was going to be the next Hokage. 

He smiled down at her and held out a hand. “You okay? Looks like I got here just in time.” 

She put her hand in his, and he effortlessly pulled her to her feet. “Are you the backup?” 

“That’s right,” he said. “Thanks for keeping her on the ropes for me. I’ll handle the rest.” 

He didn’t move, but all of a sudden he appeared in front of the swordswoman, who had struggled to her feet. Heiwa blinked, and the Shisui in front of her was gone, and three surrounded the swordswoman. The woman blocked one of their blades, but the others stabbed into her back and side. 

The woman didn’t move. Blood dripped down from the corner of her mouth. 

Heiwa blinked, and there was only one Shisui again. He pulled his tanto out of the woman, and she dropped to the ground. 

Then he was gone. 

Heiwa breathed in—her ribs ached, maybe bruised, hopefully not broken—and made her way towards the end of the bridge that Obito had been guarding. She could still hear the clash of metal against metal, but as she approached, it quieted. 

She paused as she heard a rasping gasp. She didn’t see anyone, but she reached for a kunai as she stepped forwards. An iron grip closed around her ankle and yanked, pulling her legs out from under her. A Kiri ninja lay on the ground in front of her, shark-like teeth revealed by his menacing grin. She kicked out at his face, feeling something crunch under her foot, but the grip on her ankle only tightened. She kicked again, this time hearing a crunch and a gurgle. She kicked again, and again, and again, and again—

A hand landed on her shoulder, and she twisted around, kunai ready to defend against an attack. 

Obito leapt back, hands up. “It’s okay! It’s okay, Heiwa, it’s just me. It’s over. You’re fine.” 

She gasped for air. Slowly, Obito knelt next to her. He pried off the hand clenched around her ankle—the Kiri ninja’s face was red with blood, his nose a broken mess—and then put his hands on her shoulders. “It’s okay. You’re fine. The fight’s over.” 

“It’s over?” she echoed. 

The fog had lifted from the bridge. She could see bodies littered across the bridge, some moving but most of them not. 

“Jeez, they really did a number on you,” Obito said. She looked back at him, and found him examining her hands. She winced at the sight; the skin at her knuckles had been scraped away, leaving a raw, bloody mess. 

Obito gave her a gentle smile, the kind he used to give her when she was little and had hurt herself while playing with him. “Don’t worry. We’ll get you fixed right up. Here, hop on.” 

He turned his back to her. Gingerly, Heiwa put her arms around his neck. Obito got his arms under her and boosted her further up as he stood and set off down the bridge, towards the end where Shisui and Zabuza could be seen next to each other. 

After a moment, he laughed. “This reminds me of when you were little. Pain, pain, fly away!” he sing-songed. 

Heiwa let her head slump down against his shoulder. “Please stop. Now.” 

“Okay, okay. Wouldn’t want to embarrass you in front of our esteemed allies,” Obito said. He raised his voice as he called out to the others. “Hey, Shisui! I’m taking Heiwa to the doctor! Do a sweep, make sure we got them all!” 

“I’m higher ranked than you are, now!” Shisui called back. Zabuza, without a word, stalked off towards the end of the bridge. Shisui shook his head and walked over the edge of the bridge, probably to make sure no one was hiding underneath. 

“What a day,” Obito sighed. “Still, you did well, for your first big fight.” 

Heiwa scowled into his shoulder. It didn’t feel like she had done well. She hadn’t done anything except get saved by Shisui. It felt like she was weak. 

“You hanging in there?” Obito asked. “I, uh, don’t really know where the doctor is, so I’m just kinda playing it by ear here.” 

Heiwa nodded, and then recalled that Obito couldn’t see her. “I’m fine.” 

“Is that an actual ‘I’m fine,’ or a Minori-style ‘I’m fine?’” Obito asked. “It’s okay to be a little shaken up. I was a mess after my first C-rank! I even cried. Kakashi will tell you, he made fun of me for it for years. It felt like everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong. I fell and twisted my ankle, I messed up my aim on every single attack, Kakashi and Rin saved my ass about a dozen times. . . by the end of it I was convinced I was a failure of a of a shinobi. Sometimes missions go badly. Sometimes they go . . . really, really badly. All in all, I’d say this one went pretty well.” 

Heiwa’s hand clenched painfully in his shirt, and she forced herself to let go. “I didn’t do anything.” 

“You took care of a bunch of those explosive seals,” Obito said. “You took a blast from an explosive seal full-on and managed to hold off a swordsman from Kiri. Don’t be so hard on yourself just because you’re not as skilled as Shisui is. Because, uh, that’s a pretty tall order for anyone. But you know what? You’ll get there. I know you will.” 

“How?” she couldn’t help but ask. 

“Because you work hard and you don’t give up,” Obito said. “And that’s all you really need to become an incredible ninja. Just keep moving forward.” 

Heiwa’s arms tightened around him. “. . . Thanks, Obito-sensei.” 

“Thank me when you become Hokage,” Obito said playfully. “I want a raise.” 

“Maybe. If you show you’re deserving of it.” 

“What? This wasn’t enough? You drive a hard bargain!” 

“The Hokage can’t play favorites.” 

“No fun at all . . . see if I carry you any further. I’m gonna drop you!” 

A small laugh escaped her as Obito briefly loosened his hold on her. Obito looked over his shoulder, grinning. “Made you laugh! Now you know you’re gonna be okay. Yeah?” 

Heiwa nodded and let herself rest against Obito’s back. “Yeah. I’m okay.” 

***

Sasuke hated guarding the house. He would much rather be on the bridge, where he could just stand by himself and observe everything going on. The house was small, and even when he was standing at a different side of the house from everyone else, they were still close enough that he could hear them perfectly.

At least the old man and the grandson were gone; they were the most annoying members of the household. The daughter didn’t try to talk to him, and neither did her husband, but the kid had taken to following Sasuke around like a puppy. It was unbelievably annoying; he would rather try to spar with Hinata than spend time with that kid. 

Luckily, the kid was off with his dad at their boat, fishing or whatever it was they did during the day. The only ones there were Haku, who was covering two sides of the house, Hinata, who had another side of the house, and Sasuke, who had the final side. 

Sasuke didn’t think it was likely that Kiri would waste time attacking some random woman instead of going for Tazuna himself, but Obito thought it was. Hence the vigil. 

The door to the porch slid open and the daughter stepped out with a plate of food. “Uchiha-san, I brought you lunch.” 

Before she could take another step forward, he flung a kunai at her. She stumbled back, shocked, as it pierced her shoulder. Sasuke clicked his tongue; he’d missed. 

The visage of the daughter melted away, leaving behind that of a scarred shinobi. “So, how’d you know, kid?” 

“No one here calls me Uchiha-san,” Sasuke said, and launched himself at the shinobi. They crashed through the porch doors, landing in the bedroom the genin had been staying in. He could see the daughter through the doorway, lying unconscious on the living room floor. He could hear fighting from the other sides of the house, but there was no time to investigate. The shinobi kicked Sasuke off and got to his feet, sword at the ready. Sasuke gripped his kunai in his hands, ready for an attack. 

Sasuke ducked under the first swipe and, forming a seal with his hands, blew fire at the man’s legs. The man hopped back, cursing loudly, and toppled off the side of the porch. He got back to his feet, face twisted into a glare, and Sasuke dashed forwards with a burst of chakra. Sasuke’s foot collided with the man’s stomach before he could get his bearings, kicking him away from the house. 

Before he could follow up on that attack, a blur shot towards his opponent. Sasuke activated his Sharingan automatically, and saw that it was Haku and another enemy shinobi. 

Haku didn’t so much as glance at him. “Protect Tsunami! I’ll take care of the rest.” 

“I can handle it!” Sasuke yelled back. 

“I said, go!” 

Sasuke grit his teeth, but he knew better than to disobey an order on the battlefield; although Haku wasn’t a Konoha shinobi, Obito had left him in charge. He made his way back to the kitchen, where Tazuna’s daughter was slumped against a wall. She didn’t seem to be injured to Sasuke’s eyes, but before he could check her head for lumps, Hinata raced into the room, gasping for breath. 

“S-Sasuke-kun,” she panted. 

In the back of his mind, Sasuke wondered how she was worn out from such a small fight, but ultimately dismissed the question. “You take care of her. I’ll keep watch,” he said. 

Hinata nodded meekly and knelt down beside the woman. Sasuke kept watch as Haku fought the three shinobi—one of them must have come from Hinata’s side of the house—without any visible effort at all, moving so quickly Sasuke needed the Sharingan to track him. 

A burst of chakra distracted him, and he turned around to see Hinata forming a seal with her hands. Tazuna’s daughter blinked and looked around, disoriented. 

“It was . . . just a genjutsu,” Hinata said tentatively. 

Sasuke clenched his hands into a fist; obviously it was a genjutsu. He would have figured that out in an instant if he had actually examined her. 

A shout had him whirling around to face Haku’s fight again. Five shinobi rushed out of the woods. Sasuke jerked forwards; there was no way Haku could fight eight shinobi at once. 

He didn’t move more than a step before a massive dome of icy panels formed around the eight shinobi, trapping them inside. 

“Ah!” Hinata exclaimed. Sasuke glared at her, waiting for an explanation. “U-um, Haku-san told me that he can imprison enemies in ice . . . so that they can’t escape . . .” 

Sasuke nodded, disgruntled despite himself. How was he supposed to prove himself if he was never even able to fight? 

Tazuna’s daughter gasped. “Inari! Where’s Inari?” 

Inari, Sasuke was pretty sure, was the name of Tazuna’s grandson. “Not here.” 

“H-he’s with Kaiza-san,” Hinata said. “They went fishing . . .” 

“I have to find Inari,” the woman gasped, struggling to her feet. “Those men . . . they said someone went after Inari!” 

It might have just been part of the genjutsu, but there was no sense in risking it. Sasuke turned and walked into the yard, towards Haku’s ice structure. “Someone might have gone after Tazuna’s grandson. I’m going.” 

Haku appeared in the panel of ice closest to him. “Take Hinata with you. I can handle things by myself here.” 

Sasuke frowned. He didn’t need Hinata’s help; she was useless in a fight, more likely to hold Sasuke back than actually help him. Still, he nodded, although he didn’t wait for Hinata before leaving. She caught up to him as they reached the shore, and ran over the water at his side. 

The boat was easy to spot; it was large, for a fishing boat, apparently because the son-in-law sometimes went out on longer trips in it. Sasuke motioned for Hinata to be silent and follow him as they approached the boat and climbed up the side of it, using chakra to cling to the slick wood. 

Even before they reached the top, he could hear the brat wailing about something. 

“Someone shut up that kid!” a man yelled. 

A smack rang through the air. Beside him, Hinata flinched. 

“Leave Kaiza alone!” the kid cried. “I’m not gonna let you hurt him anymore!” 

“We’re not gonna have to, brat. He’s a goner.” 

Sasuke reached the top of the boat and looked over the edge. The son-in-law was on the ground, not moving but still breathing. The kid was kneeling on the ground next to him, bawling, a burly shinobi standing over him. 

Inari was still crying and taking massive gulps of air, but somehow he managed to speak. “I-I’m not gonna let you hurt him. He’s not a goner! Get up! Get up! Dad, get up! _Dad_!” 

Sasuke grit his teeth. Inari was pathetic. He should get up and do something, instead of crying to someone who wasn’t able to help him. Who would never be able to help him. 

The man laughed. “I said, he’s dead. Give it up.” 

Inari pushed himself to his feet and glared up at the man through his tears. “He’s not! He’s not! I’m not gonna let you kill him!” 

He reached out and pushed the man. It wasn’t a hard push, Sasuke could tell, but it was so unexpected that the shinobi stumbled back. 

The man’s face twisted in anger. “Now you’ve done it, you brat. Don’t you worry, you’ll be able to say hello to dear old Daddy in just a second.” 

The man raised his hand. Sasuke pulled himself up and over the edge of the boat. He wasn’t the first, however. Hinata was just ahead of him, veins bulging as she activated her Byakugan. Without even a moment’s hesitation, she launched herself between Inari and the shinobi, hands shooting out like lightning. 

“Eight palms! Sixteen palms!” 

For a second, Sasuke could only stare at her. He’d never seen Hinata fight someone. Every time they sparred, she refused to use any Hyuuga techniques against him. At most, she used the basic techniques they learned in the Academy, and even then she was hesitant. Now, though, her face was lit up with determination, her hands moving so quickly he almost needed to activate the Sharingan to see them. 

He hadn’t thought that Hinata could be so strong. 

A blur of motion out of the corner of his eye made him duck; now wasn’t the time to be spacing out. There was another man on the boat, not as big as the other one but wielding a wicked sword. Sasuke jumped back, his hands flashing through seals, and blew out fire at him, aiming it right at the sword. 

The man dropped his sword, shaking his hand and cursing in pain at the burn. Sasuke’s leg snapped out, kicking the sword into the sea.

For a moment they stood there, evaluating each other, and then they lunged. Sasuke threw out a series of shuriken, which the man easily dodged. He threw a punch at Sasuke, who stepped back, yanking his hand backwards as he did. The man stumbled as the shuriken, attached to the ninja wires Sasuke still held in his hand, stabbed into his back. Sasuke took advantage of his distraction to throw the ninja wire around him, wrapping him up until he couldn’t move. Before the man could escape, Sasuke slammed into him, shoving him over the edge of the boat. He sank down into the sea and didn’t come up. 

Sasuke turned to find that Hinata had taken care of the other one, going so far as to tie him up with ninja wire. They stood there, staring at each other. 

“Good job,” Sasuke said. He was pretty sure that was the first time he had ever said that to Hinata.

Her cheeks flushed pink. “Th-thank you.” 

“Did you deal with that brat yet?” 

They turned to face a third shinobi, even bigger than the one Hinata had fought, with a sword as tall as Hinata was slung over one shoulder. He stared at them, clearly shocked to find his comrades had already been taken down. 

Sasuke looked at Hinata, and Hinata looked back at him. Without a word, she took an offensive stance, one open palm extended. Sasuke nodded, and together they launched forward. 

Their opponent didn’t know what hit him. 


	33. Chapter 33

Everyone had been a little weird around Naruto since the incident in the cave. Well, Sakura had been, at least. Minori was the same as ever, grinning cheerfully whenever Naruto came to visit him in the medical room in the palace. The medic-nin that the daimyo kept on staff had examined him and declared that his ankle was actually broken, so Minori was on forced bed-rest for the next three days. Usually he had that princess spending time with him, though, so Naruto wasn’t too worried about him getting bored. 

Sakura was clearly nervous around him, although he didn’t really remember why until Kakashi pulled him aside to explain. He’d wanted to clear things up with her, but Kakashi told him to wait until they were back in Konoha. 

Sakura wasn’t completely avoiding him, at least, and as the days went by she relaxed more and more. They passed the time by watching the civilian guards run through their drills and sneaking around the Twelve Guardians’ training areas. There wasn’t anyone actually there to watch train, of course, but they had a lot of fun running around a miniature forest on the palace grounds. 

Team Seven stayed in the Capital for a total of three days, in the end. Kakashi ended up getting roped into some sort of meeting while he was there. On the fourth day, when Minori was finally allowed to be up and about and Kakashi was released from his meetings, they bid goodbye to the royal family and left the bustling streets of the city for the small, dirt roads leading back to Konoha. 

“What were your meetings about, Kakashi-sensei?” Sakura asked. 

“Not much. I was being consulted on potential candidates for the Twelve Guardians. Usually they test them against the other Guardians, but that isn’t possible when there aren’t any Guardians left,” Kakashi said. “It was a lot of looking at resumes.” 

“Boring!” Naruto declared. 

“Shinobi have to do a lot of boring things,” Kakashi said. “For instance, when we return to Konoha, you get to turn in your first official mission report.” 

“What! Sensei, you never told us that!” 

“Of course we have to turn in a mission report,” Sakura said. “Didn’t you listen in class? We have to turn them in for everything above a D-rank.” 

“Aw, c’mon, you know I never pay attention in class!” 

“I am consistently amazed that you managed to get the top ranking in our class.” 

“It’s ‘cause we helped him!” Minori laughed. 

Without any clients to guard, their return trip was much more relaxed. Kakashi told them off when they got too rowdy, but otherwise they were free to bicker and chatter and, when no one else was around, practice their jutsu. Kakashi had to put limits on their practice after the third time Sakura used a genjutsu to make Naruto walk into a tree and Naruto retaliated by blasting wind into Sakura’s face to mess up her hair. It didn’t even work well--Sakura’s hair was so short that she just had to toss her head and it fell back into place. 

Kakashi’s steps faltered, briefly, and he made a small sign to them. Immediately, the three of them fell silent, eyes darting around the forest as they attempted to see what Kakashi had seen. 

Sakura was the first of them to gasp in realization, bringing her hands together and letting out a burst of chakra. Naruto blinked as the chakra washed over him, revealing the bandits hiding in the trees around them. 

No, not bandits, Naruto realized as the sun glinted off a headband. Missing-nin. 

He rolled to the side as a flurry of kunai flew through the air. Roots reached out, grabbing at the missing-nin, only for the missing-nin to breath out a stream of fire and leap away. Two of them ran at Kakashi, engaging him directly, while three more went for Naruto, Sakura, and Minori. 

Naruto found himself fighting a man who was very fond of using earth jutsu to try and trap him or crush him; a quick glance out of the corner of his eye showed Sakura using genjutsu against a woman with trench knives. Minori had somehow ended up fighting a woman with a naginata. Unable to get close, he had resorted to leaping away and hurling senbon at her from afar. 

Naruto leapt up, avoiding a hand that emerged from the earth to try to grab him. He wished now that he’d learned the anti-earth jutsu seals Narumi had mentioned once, but he hadn’t thought he’d be fighting against enemy shinobi so soon. 

Naruto formed a series of seals and blew out a gust of wind, whipping dirt into the eyes of the man fighting him. The man cursed and squinted, trying to see Naruto through the cloud of dirt. Naruto wished that he had something he could use to signal Sakura, to see if she could use a genjutsu and hide him, so that when the dirt disappeared it would look like he had vanished, but she was in the middle of placing barrier seals on the ground. 

If Naruto kept letting this guy go wild with the earth jutsu, he might throw off Sakura’s barrier seals; Naruto had to stop him quickly. 

He’d never used this move in battle before, but he had an idea. 

The puff of smoke from creating three clones was hidden by the dust cloud; Naruto transformed himself into a kunai, wielded by one of the clones on the side. 

The dust cloud cleared, and the man smirked. “Shadow clones won’t fool me, kid. I’m not your everyday bandit.” 

He ran at the clones. The two on the sides hurled their kunai forward, and were easily avoided by the man. The clone in the middle raised up his kunai, crossing blades with the man while the other two clones stood by. 

Mid-air, Naruto transformed back into himself, drew a seal from his pouch, and smacked it against the back of the man’s head. He crumpled to the ground. Grinning, Naruto exchanged a high-five with his clones, before turning to see how his friends were doing. 

Minori’s opponent lay crumpled on the ground, a senbon glistening with poison stuck in her arm. Sakura’s opponent was trapped inside a barrier, but was trying to claw her way out through the ground. 

“Don’t worry,” Sakura said, noticing him watching. “It extends into the ground, too.” 

That left Kakashi and his opponents. One of them, Naruto saw, was wrapped up completely in roots. The other one, the one with the fire jutsu, was moving too quickly for the roots to grab hold of him. “Sakura, Minori, any ideas?” 

Sakura bit her lip, her eyes flicking back and forth as she watched the fight. Naruto watched too, keeping an eye out for an opening that didn’t have a risk of hitting Kakashi. 

Something shot through the air, landing between him and Sakura. Naruto looked down, surprised, and saw a kunai with an exploding seal attached. 

He launched into motion without a moment’s thought, leaping towards Sakura, but not fast enough. The blast hit him in the back, knocking him into Sakura and sending them both crashing against a tree. A scream of rage had him turning around to see another woman with a naginata running towards him. He had time to get out of the way, but that would leave Sakura exposed. He reached for a kunai, hoping he could hit her before her naginata was in striking range. 

“I won’t let you hurt them!” 

A blur shot through the air, landing between Naruto and the woman with the naginata. Minori, wielding a naginata of his own--from the woman he had fought before, Naruto thought--engaged her, moving faster than Naruto had ever seen him move, unfailingly blocking all of her moves. But he wasn’t just blocking her, Naruto realized. As the fight continued, he started to move even before she did, anticipating her moves and acting before she could. 

The woman’s eyes were wide. Shaken, she stepped backwards, only to come back-to-back with Sakura’s barrier. Minori lunged forward, tip of the naginata pressed to the woman’s throat, and stopped short. 

No one moved. 

Naruto gasped, finally remembering to breathe. 

Footsteps crunched over the dirt road as Kakashi approached them. Slowly, he put a hand on the naginata and nudged it away from the woman. “It’s okay, Minori,” he said. “They’re safe. Now, are we going to do this the easy way, or the hard way?” 

The woman sank to her knees. Kakashi nodded at Naruto, and slowly he got to his feet and pulled out a sleep seal. She didn’t protest as he pressed it to her forehead and activated it. She slumped to the side, against Kakashi, who slowly lowered her to the ground. 

“You did well,” Kakashi told Naruto, before walking towards Sakura. He examined her for a moment before stepping back. “Just unconscious. We’ll get her back to Konoha and have someone take a look at her, but she should be fine. Now . . .” 

Kakashi stepped towards Minori, who was still staring at the naginata in his hands. Kakashi tilted up his face, and Naruto gasped. 

Minori’s eyes, previously a deep black, were blood red with a single black tomoe. 

Kakashi ruffled his hair. “Good job, Minori. Obito will be proud.” 

He walked off, towards the rest of the missing-nin they had fought. Minori’s eyes met Naruto’s. For a moment, neither of them moved, until tears welled up in Minori’s eyes. He ran forwards, nearly knocking Naruto over with the force of his hug. 

“I’m so glad you’re okay!” 

Naruto patted his back and eyed the point of the naginata nervously. “Jeez, Minori, I’m fine. Uh, you’re not going to do this every time we get in a fight, are you?” 

Minori pulled back with a sniffle, wiped his eyes, and smiled his usual smile. Naruto nearly sighed in relief; really, a Minori who wasn’t smiling was just weird. “No, I’m fine. Really. I was just a little shaken up, that’s all!” 

“Activating the Sharingan is a very intense event, emotionally speaking,” Kakashi said from where he was tying up one of the missing-nin. “It requires a very powerful emotion to activate. I would be surprised if you weren’t shaken up.” 

“A powerful emotion, huh?” Naruto wondered. “What was it?” 

Minori shrugged and laughed. “I dunno, Nakkun. I just wanted you and Sacchan to be okay.” 

“Protectiveness. Love,” Kakashi said. “Alternatively, anger. Hatred. Any emotion could cause it to activate, provided it was strong enough.” 

Naruto couldn’t imagine Minori being angry at all, much less hating anyone. “What’re we gonna do with these guys?” 

“I’ve already called for a capture squad,” Kakashi said. “There are too many of them for us to carry them back ourselves. They should be here in an hour, or so, given how close we are to Konoha. We’ll wait for them here.” 

The squad showed up in only half an hour, in the end. There were three of them, so each of them took two of the missing-nin and vanished into the trees, heading towards Konoha. With that taken care of, the team continued home, Sakura on Kakashi’s back, Minori still clutching the naginata. 

Naruto grinned at Minori. “Wait until we tell Sasuke about this! He’s gonna be so jealous, I can tell.” 

Minori laughed. “And now we both have the Sharingan!” 

Naruto nudged him. “You’re gonna totally kick his ass the next time you spar. Oh, yeah, that reminds me. Why d’you still have that naginata?” 

“Oh, this? I thought it might be fun to learn how to use it,” Minori said. 

Naruto gave him a noogie. “It’s ‘cause you’re a shrimp, right? Shorty!” 

Minori laughed and attempted to fend him off. “I just haven’t had my growth spurt yet!” 

“Sakura’s taller than you!” 

“Settle down, boys!” Kakashi called. 

“Yes, sensei!” Minori and Naruto chorused, even as they surreptitiously engaged in a poking war behind his back. What Kakashi didn’t know, he couldn’t scold them for. 

***

Nami had been swarming with ANBU since the day after the Kiri shinobi attacked. Most of them were from Uzushio, sent to guard the bridge. Heiwa had interrogated Shisui about whatever agreement Uzushio and Konoha had with Nami, but Sasuke hadn’t paid much attention to it. He was not interested in trade agreements and who got what shares of the profit. 

With the ANBU there, the genin were officially relieved of their mission. They would have left, but they’d been waiting for Heiwa’s ribs to heal a little more. She was being tended by the ANBU medic now, so Obito had said that they would return to Konoha in the morning. In the meantime, Sasuke had nothing to do. 

Tazuna was being guarded by the ANBU now, so Sasuke couldn’t go to the bridge since he would just get in their way. Tsunami was fussing over Kaiza, who was still recovering from his injuries. Inari was sticking close to them both, which was a blessing, really. Ever since the boat, he’d been pestering Sasuke incessantly. Sasuke wasn’t really interested in spending time around them; watching them made an uncomfortable pang fill his chest. Most of the other ninja, however, were also busy. Heiwa was in the middle of having her injuries healed, Obito and Shisui were both busy talking to the ANBU, and Haku and Zabuza were both at the bridge, so there was no one to observe or train with. 

Except for Hinata. 

Hinata was out in the garden, practicing the Gentle Fist style. Sasuke didn’t normally watch her practice; usually when they practiced as a team, they sparred against each other or another team, in which case Sasuke was paying too much attention to his own fight to care about hers. When they practiced alone, they usually did it at home, Sasuke in his compound and Hinata in hers. 

She was moving surprisingly quickly, like she had when she had fought the Kiri shinobi on the boat. Usually when they fought, Hinata moved slowly and shrank away from actually hitting him. He had assumed that it was because she looked down on him, that she thought he wouldn’t be able to protect himself against a full-strength attack from her. Like he had assumed Obito didn’t have a Sharingan and hated the Uchiha because he was jealous of them. 

Sasuke had assumed a lot of things that he was beginning to think weren’t entirely true. 

A hand landed on his head and roughly ruffled his hair. Irritated, Sasuke swatted the hand away; he didn’t even have to look up to know Shisui was the culprit. 

“Careful you don’t fry your brain with how hard you’re thinking,” Shisui teased. 

“Don’t you have ANBU to bother?” 

“Nope, I’ve bothered them all already! You’re the only one left on my list,” Shisui said. “So, what’s eating you? Girl problems?” 

“I don’t have girl problems!” Sasuke’s face burned. This was why he hated Shisui. 

“Sure, that’s why you’re staring at Hinata like a horny--uh, rhinoceros.” 

Sasuke rolled his eyes. “I’m not a  _ baby _ , Shisui. I know what horny means.” 

“Oh, good,” Shisui sighed. “Now Itachi won’t be able to yell at me for corrupting you. I tell you, watching my words has been a major fucking pain.” 

That didn’t mean Sasuke was going to make it easy for him. “I’m telling Nii-san you said a bad word.” 

“You’re a rotten little brat, you know that?” Shisui said, with an exaggerated sigh. “So, what’s the big deal? Are you going to train with her, or not?” 

Sasuke scowled. “She never fights me seriously. And I don’t know why.” 

“Well, let Shisui-nii-chan take a look and see what he can find out.” 

Before Sasuke could stop him, Shisui hopped down from the porch and strolled up to Hinata. She jumped in surprise as Shisui greeted her, but seemed to return his greeting. They were too far away for Sasuke to hear what they were saying; for once, he wished he had super-hearing or something instead of the Sharingan. Shisui said something that seemed to make Hinata laugh, bringing another scowl to Sasuke’s face. Of course she liked Shisui. Everyone liked Shisui, even Itachi. 

After a few moments of conversation, both of them fell into an offensive stance. Shisui stood there, waiting, for Hinata to make the first move. She moved slowly, like she had when practicing with Sasuke. Smoothly, Shisui responded to her attack at the same speed. 

Sasuke didn’t get it. Shisui could bring her down in seconds, even if he wasn’t moving at top speed. Why slow himself down?

They sped up slightly as they practiced together, but still weren’t moving at anywhere near the speeds Shisui was capable of by the time they wrapped up. Shisui bowed to her, said something else that made her laugh, and wandered back to Sasuke. 

“So? What did you learn?” Sasuke demanded. 

Shisui poked his forehead, like Itachi did. “You’ve got a lot to learn about how to treat a girl right, Sasuke-chan. Now go practice with her.  _ Nicely _ .” 

Sasuke scowled at his back so intensely he almost didn't notice Hinata walking up to the porch.

“Y-your cousin is nice,” Hinata said, still smiling quietly. Hinata never smiled like that; it made an unpleasant feeling rise in the pit of his stomach, an unpleasant feeling that urged him to do something to make Hinata stop making that face for  _ Shisui _ , of all people. 

“He’s gay for my brother,” Sasuke blurted.

Hinata’s shoulders fell, slightly. “Oh . . .” 

He wanted to slam his head against the wall. It wasn’t even true! Or, at least, he hoped it wasn’t. He  _ really  _ hoped it wasn’t. 

Sasuke was definitely going to crash his brother’s time with Shisui to make sure nothing was going on. In the meantime, he needed to wipe that image from his brain. 

He got to his feet and walked to the yard. “Train with me.” 

“M-me?” 

Sasuke stood in the middle of the field, waiting for her. Obviously he meant her; there wasn’t anyone else around. After a few moments, Hinata joined him. She wasn’t relaxed or laughing, like she had been with Shisui; her eyes kept nervously flicking away from him and then slowly creeping back towards him. 

Sasuke took a deep breath. He wasn’t about to let Shisui show him up. He was going to get Hinata to spar with him properly. 

He’d always moved first before. Now, he waited. “You start,” he said, when Hinata didn’t move. 

Hinata’s eyes widened in surprise. “Oh. O-okay.” 

When she finally moved, she was even slower than she had been while fighting Shisui. Sasuke restrained himself and didn’t speed up as he responded. It felt strange and awkward, going through the motions so slowly. Although he had to admit that once he got used to it, he started to notice the little mistakes that his speed usually covered up. Perhaps there was some merit to this style of training after all. Maybe he should train with Hinata like this more often. 

There was no real loser. It was more like the spar naturally came to an end. 

It had been slow, but he’d still managed to work up a sweat--it was a surprisingly warm day--so once they finished, he turned to go, planning on seeking out a bath, or at the very least a shower. 

“Um, thank you for training with me,” Hinata said quietly. “I know I’m not . . . not very smart, or strong, like you and Heiwa . . . and I’m always dragging you down . . .” 

“Quit talking like that,” Sasuke snapped. “I saw what you did on the boat.” 

“Um, that was . . .” 

Sasuke turned around. Hinata flinched away from his stare. “You’re strong. And I’m going to make sure you see it. My teammate won’t be weak.” 

With that, he stormed off to the house. Shisui was leaning against the porch doorway. “Well, it’s a start,” he sighed. Sasuke kicked him in the shin as he passed, leaving him hopping up and down and swearing up a storm. 

“You’re a rotten little bastard!” Shisui yelled after him. 

“I’m telling Nii-san you said that!” Sasuke yelled. 

“You’re an angel! A sweet, tender angel!” 

Sasuke slammed the door to the bathroom behind him, and finally let a snort of laughter escape him. 

“Shisui up to his usual tricks?” 

Sasuke jumped; he couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed someone else was in the bathroom. Obito was stretched out in the tub, a book held above his head. He waved a hand in greeting. “Yo!” 

“What are you doing here?” Sasuke asked, as he went to rinse off. 

“I slipped in the mud on my way back from the bridge,” Obito laughed. “Tsunami practically forced me in here at knife-point. What about you? Busy training?” 

Sasuke nodded. “With Hinata.” 

“That’s good. I’m glad you two are getting along,” Obito said. Sasuke didn’t really know if he would call it ‘getting along,’ but it was more trouble than it was worth to argue the point. 

Once he was finished rinsing off, he slipped into the tub and soaked in the warmth. Obito, however, kept distracting him. He’d noticed the long scar at the side of Obito’s eye--it never failed to send shivers down his spine--but he’d never realized how many scars Obito had all over his body. 

Obito laughed. “What, you want my war stories?” 

“No.” Sasuke jerked his gaze away, only for his eyes to go back to that scar on his face. “You were in the war? Which one?” 

“The third one,” Obito said. “I’m not  _ that  _ old!” 

Sasuke had no idea how old Obito was, and he didn’t care. He also didn’t really care about Obito’s war stories. At least, not right now. There was something else he wanted to ask about more. “Why do you hate the Uchiha?” 

“Eh?” Obito blinked at him. “I hate the Uchiha?” 

“Don’t you?” 

Obito let out a long, slow breath of air. “That’s a bit . . . complicated, I guess? I disagree with them on a lot of things. I don’t have a lot of happy memories with the clan. But there are people in the Uchiha I love. Shisui, Itachi, Mikoto, you . . . so no, I wouldn’t say I hate them. Although I might hate the elders a little bit! Although, I’m not alone in that. Itachi’s not exactly fond of them either.” 

“Itachi hates the elders?” Sasuke had never gotten that impression from his brother. 

Obito made a face. “I dunno about  _ hate _ , really. Itachi doesn’t really hate people. Unless they tried to do something to you, then he might hate them.” He let out a soft laugh. “I remember he used to tag along with Shisui to bother Kakashi and I all the time, until you were born. Then it was all Sasuke this, Sasuke that, Sasuke threw up on Father the other day--” 

“I get the picture,” Sasuke interrupted. “But then why aren’t you part of the clan?” 

“I wasn’t happy as part of the Uchiha clan,” Obito said. “I never really felt like they were my family. Kakashi and Sakumo are my family, and they make me happy. So, I did what made me happy, even if it made the elders really mad at me. Although I guess that makes me sound pretty selfish.” 

Sasuke sank deeper into the water, turning Obito’s words over in his mind. Obito got out of the bath a several minutes later. 

“Don’t drown in the bath!” he said cheerfully. 

Sasuke emerged from the water. “I don’t think it’s selfish. Or maybe it is. But I don’t think you were wrong.” 

Obito’s smile was soft; for a moment, it almost reminded Sasuke of his mother. “Thanks, Sasuke. You’re a good kid.” 

With that, the door closed, leaving Sasuke alone. He sighed and relaxed into the bath. He didn’t mind his teammates, most of the time, but there was nothing like the peace and quiet of being alone. 

The door opened. 

Feet pattered across the bathroom floor. 

Sasuke opened his eyes to find Inari staring at him. 

“Nii-chan, hurry up and get out of the bath so you can show me some cool ninja moves!” 

Sasuke closed his eyes. “You have three seconds to go away before I set you on fire.” 

The brat yelped and ran away. 

Finally, peace and quiet. 


	34. Chapter 34

“Do we really have to do this?”

Naruto glared down at the paper in front of him. 

“The sooner you start it, the sooner it’ll be over,” Sakura advised, as she surveyed her own paper, filled half-way with tidy characters marching across the page. 

Minori, on Naruto’s other side, was still scribbling all over his paper in his usual chicken-scratch handwriting. “I’m already almost done!” 

“Yeah, because you write faster than a ninja runs,” Naruto said. “Is that even readable?” 

“I can read it!” 

“They’re gonna need the Cryptology department to decipher it.” 

“Could you both focus, please?” Sakura said. “We should hurry and finish these before Kakashi-sensei comes to nag us again.” 

Naruto groaned and started to write. “I know, I know. I’m writing. I can’t believe we have to write these stupid things. What are they even for? And why do they need one from each of us?” 

“I can’t believe I was knocked unconscious by a  _ tree _ ,” Sakura muttered down at her mission report. “And they’re to get as comprehensive an idea of what happened as possible.” 

“They’re also to get an idea of what you’re thinking and feeling,” Minori said. “Like, psychology.” 

“Really? I’ve never heard that,” Sakura said. 

“It’s an unofficial thing,” Minori said. “And don’t worry about getting knocked out! Nakkun was knocked out too.” 

“That’s right. What did happen then? Your chakra was . . . strange,” Sakura said. 

“I felt it too,” Minori said. 

Naruto could feel both of their eyes boring into him. “Yeah, about that. Uh, I guess I should tell you guys now. It’s kind of hard to explain?” He fidgeted with his paper until he accidentally ripped it a little. “Remember how when we were little, the Kyuubi attacked the village?” 

Sakura nodded. “Of course. We learned about it in school. The Kyuubi attacked the village, and the Yondaime killed it.” 

“Well, uh, turns out you can’t actually kill a tailed beast. Well, Narumi-ji-chan says you can, but they just return after a little while because they’re made of chakra or something. But, uh, the Yondaime didn’t kill the Kyuubi. He sealed it.” 

Sakura frowned and tapped her pen against her lip. “In a vessel of some sort? I don’t think we’ve learned any fuinjutsu like that. I don’t think your standard storage seal would be enough to hold a tailed beast.” 

Minori’s eyes were wide as saucers. “You mean a jinchuuriki, like Rin-nee-chan?” 

“Uh, yeah,” Naruto said, relieved that he didn’t have to say it himself. He’d met Rin a few times over the years in passing; Narumi had said something about Naruto doing jinchuuriki training with her at some point, but so far they hadn’t done anything. Naruto planned to ask him about it again; he didn’t want a repeat of what had happened in the cave. Rin had been a jinchuuriki since before Naruto had been born, so maybe she would be able to help him tap into the Kyuubi’s chakra without going berserk. 

“It’s you,” Sakura realized, her eyes going nearly as wide as Minori’s. “You’re the Kyuubi jinchuuriki?” 

“Yeah,” Naruto said. “I am. That a problem?” 

His heart pounded in his chest as Sakura and Minori exchanged classes. Then, as one, they raised their fists and socked Narumi firmly on either arm. 

“Ow! Hey, what’s the big idea!” 

“You’re being dumber than usual,” Sakura said. “Of course we don’t care. You’re our friend.” 

Minori nodded enthusiastically. “Right, right, what Sacchan said! You could be the Kyuubi itself and we wouldn’t care!” 

His eyes watered. Naruto quickly rubbed at them, before the other two could notice. “Got dust in my eye,” he muttered in answer to their teasing smiles. 

Luckily, their attention was drawn away from him by the door opening and closing. “I’m home!” 

“Welcome home,” they chorused. 

Narumi poked his head through the entryway. “Oh, you’re back! How was the C-rank?” 

“Pretty okay,” Naruto said. “We got attacked by bandits and missing-nin and stuff.” 

“So, more of a B-rank or A-rank in the end,” Narumi said. “I thought it might turn out that way. The daimyo is pretty high profile, ya know. I was kind of surprised they went with just a genin team. But I guess what Madam Shijimi wants, Madam Shijimi gets.” 

Naruto sulked at the reminder. “They didn’t send just us. They sent ANBU too, to watch in case anything got out of hand. I guess nothing got ‘out of hand’ enough to make them worried, though. Even though Minori got kidnapped like a loser and we had to save him.” 

“But you took so long I had to save myself, Nakkun,” Minori said with an exaggerated pout. “Some knight in shining armor you are.” 

Naruto elbowed him, grinning. “Meant you got in good with a princess though. She was pretty, too.” 

“She was nice!” Minori declared. “She said I could visit her at the Capital whenever I wanted.” 

“Are you hungry? I’ll make snacks,” Narumi said, walking past them through the kitchen. “Sakura, I have some new scenarios for you and Itachi to solve. Remind me to give them to you before you leave.” 

Sakura sighed. “Thanks, Shishou. I wanted to talk to him anyways. I need to practice that genjutsu more.” 

“Yeah! You really scared me, ya know!” Naruto exclaimed. “I thought you were . . . you know . . . for real.” 

Sakura stared down at her paper. “I know. I’m sorry.” 

Naruto immediately felt guilty for bringing it up again; Sakura had already apologized before, at the daimyo’s palace, and she’d only been trying to protect herself in the first place. He looked at Minori for help. 

Minori, grinning, elbowed Naruto so hard he was knocked into Sakura. “Or maybe Nakkun needs to get better at genjutsu.” 

Naruto laughed sheepishly. “I am pretty bad at it.” 

Sakura perked up. “I wonder if Itachi-senpai can help?” 

“Ooh, of course Itachi-senpai can help,” Naruto said playfully. 

Minori threw himself to the side like a dramatically fainting maiden in a bad TV drama. “Oh, only Itachi-senpai can help us now!” 

Sakura ignored them. “Shishou, do you know if he’s coming over today, or not?” 

“I’m not sure,” Narumi called from the kitchen. “He’s been pretty busy recently. He’d probably come if he heard you were here, though.” 

“Oooooh,” Naruto and Minori teased in unison. “He’ll come for Sakura-chan!” 

Sakura smacked them both upside the head. “Shut up! Shishou didn’t mean it like that.” In the kitchen, Narumi chuckled, but Sakura pushed bravely on. “He just meant that we’ll have a bunch of new scenarios to solve, so of course Itachi would be interested in that.” 

“Oh, yeah, of course. He’s interested in . . .  _ fuinjutsu _ ,” Naruto said. 

Minori sighed. “Poor Sacchan, cast aside for some paper and ink.” 

“Hey, fuinjutsu is a lot more than paper and ink--” 

“That is a gross oversimplification of the subject--” 

Laughing, Minori put his hands in the air. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! It was a mistake!” 

Sakura sniffed. “We’ll forgive you, but only because we have more important things to do than correct the error of your ways. We have to finish these reports.” 

Naruto groaned and reluctantly picked up his pen. He plodded through the report, occasionally pausing to eat a piece of the peaches Narumi had sliced for them as a snack. Sakura finished before him, so she and Minori talked while he wrote. Sometimes he accidentally wrote what they were saying instead of what he meant to write, and he had to cross out a line and correct himself, but he eventually managed to finish. 

He flopped against the floor in relief. “Done!” 

Sakura neatly stacked their reports. “We should bring these to Kakashi-sensei. Shishou, I’ll take those scenarios now!” 

Narumi vanished into his office and eventually merged with a small pile of papers, each of which detailed some kind of mission or battle scenario that Itachi and Sakura worked on together, using seals to solve the problem. Naruto, personally, thought they were boring; he and Narumi had mock-missions in the forest outside their house instead. 

The three of them trooped through the forest to Minori’s house, where they found Kakashi sitting at a table with Obito and his team. 

“What? When did you guys get back?” Naruto leaned over Sasuke’s shoulder, trying to read his report, until Sasuke shoved him away. 

“Just a couple hours ago,” Obito said. “But if I don’t write this report now I’ll forget, so we’re having a report party.” 

Kakashi narrowed his eyes at Naruto, Minori, and Sakura. “These three put off their reports for two days.” 

“They’re finished, they’re finished!” Naruto said quickly. Sakura stepped forwards with the reports and handed them over. Kakashi read over them briefly before nodding and setting them aside. 

Minori had squished himself up against Heiwa’s side to watch her write. “You sure are putting lots of kanji in there,” he noted. 

“It gets the point across efficiently,” Heiwa said. 

“They’re gonna have to break out the dictionary!” 

“Good. It’ll be educational.” 

Sakura peeked over Heiwa’s shoulder. Naruto could practically hear Heiwa’s teeth grinding. “Even I don’t know  _ that  _ one.” 

Kakashi leaned over. “Ah. That’s a very old-fashioned word. Although it does fit the situation perfectly.” 

Heiwa set down her pencil. “I’m going home to finish this.” 

Minori only laughed. “Hei-tan’s mad!” 

“Let them finish their reports before you bother them,” Kakashi said. 

Hinata started down at her paper, nibbling her lower lip. She was pretty cute when she concentrated, Naruto thought. After a moment, she set down her pen and slid her paper towards Obito. “I--I finished.” 

Sasuke nodded and put his paper on top of hers. 

Before Obito could pick them up, Minori snatched up Sasuke’s paper. “Whoa! A coup? Lucky, we just escorted the daimyo!” 

“Wait, a coup? Let me see that!” 

There was a brief scuffle over the paper; eventually, Sakura ended up holding it, while Minori and Naruto were forced to lean in from either side. 

Sasuke’s report was brief and to the point, so all three of them finished quickly. Naruto groaned once he’d reached the end, a summary of a fight on a boat that managed to sound super awesome despite Sasuke’s very bare-bones description. “That’s way cooler than our mission!” 

Sasuke smirked. Jerk. 

“Personally, yours sounds more worthwhile to me,” Heiwa said. “We didn’t even get to meet the leader of the coup.” 

“Zabuza’s a pretty important guy from what I hear. But yeah, it would’ve been cool to meet Mei Terumi. I hear she’s got some pretty impressive bloodline limits,” Obito said. 

From where he was standing, Naruto could just barely hear Heiwa mutter, “Not that impressive.” 

Before he could ask her what she meant, however, Sasuke spoke up. “When’s our next mission?” 

“Whoa, slow down there, cowboy!” Obito exclaimed. “We only just got back from a C-rank.”

“So? Get us another one,” Sasuke said. 

“I think your teammates could do with a little break, at least,” Obito said. Surprisingly, Sasuke didn’t protest that, instead simply shrugging and looking away. “Some training and D-ranks will be good for us. I bet you have some stuff you want to work on after that C-rank.” 

Heiwa’s pen seemed to be pressing very firmly onto the paper. Naruto watched her for a bit, waiting to see if the pen would rip the paper, before getting distracted by Hinata. 

“U-um, we also have . . . medic-nin lessons,” she said tentatively. “We only have a few more sessions of first-aid lessons to take before we’re done, and then the medic-nin lessons start . . .” 

Obito smacked his fist against the palm of his hand. “That’s it! I knew I was forgetting something. Which of you are going to continue with it, again?” 

Hinata glanced between Heiwa and Sasuke before raising her hand. Both Minori and Sakura joined her in raising their hands. 

“I’m interested in medical seals, so I thought it would be a good complement,” Sakura explained. 

“I just think it sounds interesting!” Minori declared. 

Hinata mumbled something that Naruto couldn’t hear, but Heiwa nodded in understanding. Naruto wished he'd been close enough to hear it. 

“I guess while you do that, I’ll teach some new jutsu to the other two,” Obito said. “How about it? You kids want a fun new jutsu?” 

Naruto thrust his hand up. “I do! I want a new jutsu!” Sasuke and Heiwa were both staring so intensely at Obito that Naruto was surprised he didn’t burst spontaneously into flames. 

Kakashi glanced up from the report he’d been skimming. “Ah, Naruto, you have something else to do. I’ll give you the details later.” 

“What? C’mon, sensei, I want a new jutsu,” Naruto complained. 

“We still get new jutsu, right?” Sasuke demanded. 

“Don’t worry, don’t worry,” Obito laughed. “You’ll get your jutsu. How about you, Hinata?” 

Hinata shook her head. “I have training with . . . my father.” 

Obito smiled at her gently. “Well, if you change your mind.” 

Minori waved his hand through the air. “Sensei! I want to learn that naginata!” 

“Naginata, huh?” Obito said. He turned to look at Kakashi. “Why does our son want to learn the naginata?” 

“He’s possessed, obviously,” Kakashi said, prompting a snort of laughter from Obito. “He found one during the mission.” 

Obito hummed thoughtfully. “Do we know anyone in the village who knows how to use one?” 

“Not that I know of,” Kakashi said. 

“Hm,” Sasuke said. They all, as one, turned to look at him. Sasuke avoided all of their gazes. “No. I don’t know anyone.” 

"Ooookay," Obito said. "A tokubetsu jounin maybe? Or a chuunin? I don't know any of them that well." 

"Maybe," Kakashi said. 

The two of them started to throw names back and forth, continuing even after Heiwa finished her report. Eventually, the six of them got bored and headed into town to restock their supplies and do some shopping. 

As they reached the supply store most genin used, mostly because it was cheap and good for the price, Naruto threw his arms around Sakura and Minori's shoulders and held them back for a moment while the others went in. Hinata looked back for a moment, clearly wondering why they were hanging back. Naruto grinned at her, and she blushed and hurried after Heiwa. 

"Hey, distract Sasuke and Heiwa for me," he whispered. 

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him. “What are you planning?” 

“I’m gonna get a bunch of awesome stuff for our next fight against them, but I don’t want them to see,” Naruto said. 

“What about Hinata?” Sakura asked. 

“Hinata’s probably gonna be with one of them anyways,” Naruto said. “And even if she’s not, she’s not gonna pay attention to what I’m doing. But Heiwa and Sasuke always notice what I buy.” 

MInori gave him a thumbs up. “Nice plan! I’ve got Sasuke!” 

"I can talk to Heiwa," Sakura said. "But I'm not going to distract her. That would make her suspicious." 

Naruto grinned at them. "Thanks. I’ll get something awesome for you guys too.” 

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Just get in there before the others wonder what's up." 

"I'm going, I'm going," Naruto said, before walking through the door. "Don't forget to distract the others!" 

Minori's cheerful voice followed him. "Don't worry! You can count on us!" 

***

"Minori." 

Minori had been prepared to distract Sasuke by any means necessary. Judging by Sasuke's rapid approach, however, it was looking like he wouldn't get to bring any of his plans to fruition. 

"Yeah?" Minori asked. 

Sasuke stopped next to him and leaned in close enough that his hair brushed against Minori's cheek. It was surprisingly soft. 

"If you want to learn the naginata, slip away from the others after dinner and come with me. And don't tell Obito and Kakashi. They wouldn't like it." 

Minori was so surprised he forgot all about distracting Sasuke and let him wander off. Luckily, he didn't seem interested in heading over to where Naruto was picking out a variety of unusual items, instead standing by himself and staring intensely at the different types of ninja wire. Minori watched him for a moment before turning back to the weapon tape--all in dull shades of black, grey, and dark blue or green--and wondered what that had been about. 

He continued to wonder all through dinner. After dinner, the group split, Hinata, Heiwa, and Sasuke all returning home, while the other three lingered for a bit outside the restaurant. 

"Minori, heading home? Or wanna go to the arcade or something?" Naruto asked. 

Minori wasn't a big fan of the arcade, although he knew it was popular with a lot of boys in their class. "I'm going to the lab. Wanna come?" 

Naruto shuddered. "No thanks! That place gives me the creeps." 

Minori looked at Sakura, who was more likely to want to come along, as she sometimes liked to talk to Kabuto. However, he was fairly sure that she wouldn't want to come today, and sure enough, she shook her head. "My parents are expecting me home. I'll see you both tomorrow." 

"See you!" 

Minori wandered off on his own in a direction that could conceivably lead to the lab. After a moment, Sasuke jumped down from the roofs and joined him. 

"This way," Sasuke said. 

Minori followed Sasuke through the village until they reached a huge, stately gate. Inside, it was like a whole other village, full of shops and houses and training grounds, but everyone inside was an Uchiha. 

"The Uchiha compound?" 

Sasuke nodded. 

Minori glanced at the gate again; the two Uchiha at the gate didn't seem particularly happy to see him. But maybe they were like that with everyone. "Am I allowed in?" 

"You're with me. Besides, you're an Uchiha." 

"Not by name." 

Sasuke shrugged. "Whatever. You can keep standing there if you want. But if you keep hanging around outside, word is going to get to your parents. And they have issues with the Uchiha." 

With that, he turned and walked into the compound. After a moment, Minori followed him. A few Uchiha gave him odd looks or glared at him as he passed, but Minori ignored them. "Where are we going?" 

Sasuke, of course, didn't answer. After a moment, they reached a house. Sasuke pulled experimentally at the door, and stepped inside when it opened. "I'm home." 

"Welcome home," a woman called. "Your brother is out training." 

Sasuke traded his shoes for slippers. He glared down at the pair of slippers left by the door, as if angry at them for being too big for Minori's feet, before opening up a closet and digging through it for a smaller pair. 

Once they'd both taken off their shoes, Sasuke led them into the kitchen, where his mother was cleaning up the dishes. 

"I didn't know you were home, or I would have cooked something. You can have Shisui's share, if you like, and I can make him something new, but you have to deliver it to him at the Hokage's office," she said. 

"I ate already," Sasuke said. "We wanted to ask you something." 

"We?" She turned around, her eyes widening in surprise as she noticed Minori. "Oh, Kakashi's son." 

Minori recalled that he had met her in passing, briefly, once before. She had called him the same thing then. Kakashi's son. He gave her a grin and a little wave. "Hi, ba-chan!" 

She looked momentarily startled at being addressed so familiarly before her expression melted into a mask of politeness. "What can I do for you?" 

"He wants to learn how to use the naginata. You know how, right?" Sasuke asked. 

"I do," Mikoto said, her expression once again surprised. "I learned from my sensei when I was a genin. I suppose I can teach you." 

Sasuke nodded and turned to go. "Good. I'm going to look for Nii-san."

"Ah, Sakkun, wait--" 

The door closed. Minori was alone. He swallowed his nerves and gave Mikoto a big smile. "So, what's first?" 

She looked him over. "First, you need a naginata. As do I." 

Minori patted one of the scrolls strapped to his hip. "I have it!" 

"Well then, that leaves me. I'll be right back." 

Minori wandered out into the main room once Mikoto was gone, wondering if Obito had grown up in a house like this. He'd never been to the Uchiha compound before--he had never really talked with any Uchiha other than Obito, either--and he had to admit he was curious. It was bigger than his house, more polished, but emptier, like it was built to entertain guests who weren't supposed to realize anyone actually lived there. At any given moment in Minori's house, there was a half-completed photo album left open, training gear strewn where it had been left, plush animals that Naruto had won for Minori at the arcade placed on the couch. Here, there were carefully curated decorations, cushions laid out perfectly around a room clearly meant for meetings, and a single photo of Sasuke's father in the household shrine. 

He stopped snooping as Mikoto returned, naginata in hand. “We’ll do this in the garden,” she said, gesturing for him to follow her. 

Minori ended up sitting on the porch as Mikoto went through the basics of the naginata, sweeping the blade around her and stabbing it through the air. It looked familiar, like he knew it all already. And he did, he realized, from when he had activated his Sharingan while fighting the bandit. The naginata had carved itself into his brain like it carved through the air. 

The world sharpened as he activated his Sharingan. Mikoto’s motions, previously fast, slowed so much that he could see her next move coming from a mile away. He watched, enraptured by the smooth sweeps and thrusts of the naginata, a weapon that seemed unwieldy but looked so elegant in Mikoto’s hands. 

The naginata faltered. 

Minori tore his gaze away from the naginata to look at Mikoto, and found her staring at his face. 

“So, you do have the Sharingan,” she said, almost to herself. 

After a moment, Minori nodded. That seemed to bring Mikoto back to herself, and she focused her attention on the naginata again. “Now, some more advanced movements.” 

Minori watched her for hours as she showed him everything she knew and he absorbed it all; he had no idea what time it was by the time Mikoto finally set aside the naginata, but it had to be past midnight. 

“It’s all in your head now,” she said, “but you need to practice so that your body learns it as well. Train with the naginata every day--” 

“Yoohoooo! Mikoto!” 

Mikoto’s calm expression didn’t change, but Minori had a feeling she was annoyed. “I will return shortly.” 

Mikoto left. Minori stayed in the garden for a moment, but he hadn’t been told to stay there, so his curiosity soon had him following Mikoto to the front door. She was deep in conversation with another woman, who seemed to be much more enthusiastic about the subject matter than Mikoto. As soon as she spotted Minori peeking around the corner, however, her words slowed until they had stopped altogether. 

After a few moments, she clapped her hands together and smiled. “Well, this must be Minori! Come here, let me look at you.” 

Slowly, Minori approached. The woman stared deep into his eyes for what felt like hours before reaching up and pinching his cheek firmly between her painted nails. “Why, aren’t you precious! And doesn’t he look like Yoko?” 

Mikoto sighed. “Emi . . .” 

The woman grabbed Minori’s shoulders and turned him around so that both of them were facing Mikoto. “Don’t you see a resemblance, Mikoto? He looks just like Yoko! He has to be her son! It all fits. Shouldn’t he be with family, instead of all alone?” She spun Minori around and gave him a wide smile. “Wouldn’t you like that, Minori? To have a nice, big family all of your own?” 

“Emi-ba-san, good evening.” 

The woman let go of Minori’s shoulders in surprise. Minori stepped back, out of her reach, as his eyes landed on Itachi. Minori had never been so thankful to see another person in his life. He solemnly promised to refrain from making “Itachi-senpai” jokes for a week in repayment. 

“Ah, Itachi-kun. Good evening,” the woman said. 

“It’s been a while since we spoke. I hope you’ve been well,” Itachi said. 

Sasuke, standing just behind Itachi, jerked his head towards the door. Minori darted around Itachi and joined Sasuke, replacing his slippers with his shoes in record time. Sasuke shoved his hands in his pockets and started down the street. 

“Mom says we should be nice to Emi-ba-san because her only daughter went missing before I was born,” Sasuke said. “But she’s annoying.” 

“She was . . . strange,” Minori said, at last. 

Sasuke said nothing else for a long time, until they reached the gates of the Uchiha compound. “Are you going home?” 

“Oh. Not yet, probably,” Minori said. “I was thinking of training. Want to come?” 

He didn’t expect anything to come of his offer, but Sasuke shrugged and walked out of the compound without another word, leading the way to their usual training ground. The village was nearly silent this late at night, with only the occasional late-night wanderer or police officer crossing their paths. 

They reached the training ground. It was weird to be there with just the two of them, and none of their teammates. 

Minori unsealed the naginata he had taken from the bandit. It was too long and too heavy for him, but he hadn’t had a chance to order a new one yet. Standing across from him, Sasuke pulled out a fuuma shuriken. 

A startled laugh escaped him. “What are you going to do with that?” 

The corner of Sasuke’s lips turned up in a small smirk. “I guess you’re going to find out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update: We have a new work in the series! Check it out if you want to find out how Heiwa and Minori first met.


	35. Chapter 35

In the following weeks, neither team took another C-rank, instead focusing on their individual training and doing the occasional D-rank. Sasuke and Heiwa usually spent their time training and sparring together, and Sakura, Minori, and Hinata were soon deep in the medical ninja training program. Naruto, meanwhile, met with Rin. 

He’d met Rin before, of course, first as yet another family friend and then as Konoha’s second jinchuuriki, but they had never spent much time together. Rin was busy with the hospital, teaching classes doing her rounds and being in charge of the civilian doctors and doing whatever else it was that she did. Or, at least, that was Obito’s rather rushed explanation for why Naruto would only be able to train with her for a few hours every other day. 

They met some distance away from Konoha, both of them escorted through a portal by Obito. Kakashi accompanied them as well, “Just in case anything goes wrong!” as Obito cheerfully declared. 

“Is something gonna go wrong?” Naruto asked. 

Rin gave him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, we’ll make sure you’re prepared. I’ve heard that the Kyuubi tends to be a bit volatile, so it seemed like a good idea to take precautions.” 

“From the Sanbi?” Naruto asked. 

“That’s right. I mentioned what we were planning, in case he had some advice—and he did, although depending on how angry the Kyuubi is, it may not be useful. Now, do you know how to meditate?” 

Naruto nodded. “Yeah, Jiji taught me ages ago, for chakra control stuff.” 

“Good!” Rin said, clapping her hands together. “Now, you’re going to enter your subconscious and meet with the Kyuubi. With any luck, you’ll be able to persuade him to lend you some of his power. Once you’ve done that, you and I can work on controlling that power.” 

“Okay,” Naruto said. They sat down on the ground, legs crossed, facing each other. Naruto closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Uh. Rin? How do I enter my subconscious exactly?” 

“I’ll walk you through it,” Rin said. “Kushina-san decided the best way to have me figure it out was to throw me off a cliff, but I think we can avoid any life-threatening situations.” 

After the first half an hour of meditation, Naruto was half convinced that he would have preferred the life-threatening situations. Rin’s voice was a quiet drone in the background, barely distinguishable from the buzz of insects. Sweat trickled down his back from the humid heat of the day, unseasonably warm for spring, and from the strain of keeping still for so long. His head nodded a few times until he forced himself awake again, only to start nodding again a few moments later. He opened his eyes, blinking against the bright light, in an attempt to wake himself up, but his eyes slipped closed once again. 

And then, all at once, Naruto landed in lukewarm water. He flailed around, desperately spitting out the foul-tasting water, until he gathered himself enough to realize that the water only really went up to his knees. 

Naruto pushed himself up and stood, wrinkling his nose at the stench. “Ugh. What is this place, the sewers?” He took a few steps forward, looking around at the pipes running along the ceiling. “Rin? Obito-sensei? Kakashi-sensei?” 

His words echoed through the empty hall, but there was no response. Unsure what else to do, Naruto walked on. There was something about the sewer that unsettled him, although he wasn’t sure exactly what it was. The feeling that he wasn’t alone, maybe, that there was some presence that wouldn’t hesitate to crush him like a bug lurking somewhere in the sewer. 

When Naruto finally reached the end of the hall, it clicked. There, locked behind a gate and hidden in darkness, was the Kyuubi. For a moment, Naruto could only stare. It was somehow both smaller and bigger than he had expected—he’d heard that the Kyuubi had crushed parts of the village, so he had known it would be big, but it was strange to see it contained in a single cell. 

“Hello?” Naruto called. The Kyuubi didn’t stir. “Hey, you’re the Kyuubi, aren’t you?” 

The Kyuubi shifted, and a single, glowing eye opened up, pinning Naruto in place with the force of its stare. Naruto couldn’t even take a step back, let alone a step forward. 

The Kyuubi emitted a low growl. “You, boy . . . come over here.” 

It shifted again, claws gleaming in the dim light of the hallway, and Naruto finally managed a step back. “No way,” he said, eyeing the bars. The gaps between the bars were too large for the Kyuubi to fit through, of course, but they were still large enough for Naruto to slip through—or the Kyuubi’s claws. 

The Kyuubi made an irritated noise. “So, you aren’t as stupid as you look. How disappointing. If only this door would open, I could devour you.” 

Naruto gulped. Somehow, Rin had failed to mention that getting eaten was a possibility. Had the Sanbi threatened to eat Rin? Probably not, Naruto thought, or else she would have mentioned it. 

“You’re a lot nastier than the Sanbi, aren’t you?” he said. 

The Kyuubi snarled, teeth gnashing, and Naruto jumped back, his heart pounding in his chest. “Don’t speak to me . . . of the Sanbi.” 

“You know the Sanbi?” Naruto said. “He’s sealed in my friend.” 

The Kyuubi snorted. “Of course he is. He’s weak.” 

“You’re sealed too, ya know,” Naruto noted. 

“It doesn’t matter,” the Kyuubi growled. “I’ll break free, and then I’ll devour you. Your petty seals don’t stand a chance against the strength of the Kyuubi.” 

Naruto rocked back on his heels, considering the thought growing in his mind. “So, you’re stronger than the Sanbi?” 

The Kyuubi’s tail thrashed against the gate. “Of course! I’m the Kyuubi. I’m the strongest.” 

“What about ninja?” Naruto asked. “Are you stronger than any ninja?” 

The Kyuubi growled. “Of course. I could wipe out your puny village with one sweep of my tails.” 

“But the Yondaime beat you,” Naruto said. 

“I was controlled,” the Kyuubi snarled. “In a fair fight, I would have destroyed him.” 

“Okay,” Naruto said, filing that comment away for later. “So, if I used your chakra, would I be able to beat the Sanbi jinchuuriki in a fight?” 

“Of course,” the Kyuubi said, sounding almost insulted. 

Naruto grinned. “I dunno, they’ve got some kind of deal going on where they work together. They’re super strong now. I’ve never been able to beat them. I don’t think you could. I bet you’d lose.” 

“Say that again, brat!” The Kyuubi roared. 

“I bet you’d lose,” Naruto taunted. 

“I would destroy the Sanbi, and his puny jinchuuriki, too!” 

“Then prove it!” Naruto held out a hand. “Lend me your chakra. Fight with me.” 

For a few long moments, the Kyuubi was silent. Naruto hardly dared to breath. 

Then, at last, the Kyuubi chuckled. “I see . . . you have some nerve, boy, trying to trick me. Very well . . . I will ‘fight with you.’” 

Power rushed over him, the same feeling that had come over him when he was in the cave. Naruto opened his eyes, unsure when he had closed them, to find a red haze covering his vision. Sitting across from him, Rin smiled. 

“Very good,” she said. “That’s the first step. You’ve harnessed the Kyuubi’s power. Now you just have to learn to control it. I hope you’re ready—I won’t go easy on you.” 

***

When Naruto returned home after a long, painful afternoon of training with Rin—for someone so nice, she sure was a horrible taskmaster—both of his teammates were waiting for him in the living room, along with Itachi. He and Sakura had been working on something, probably while Minori offered ‘helpful’ advice, but once Naruto entered the room, Minori and Sakura were at his side in a flash. 

Minori eagerly bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. “How was it? Did you meet the Kyuubi? Did you learn a bunch of cool stuff?” 

Naruto opened his mouth to answer, only for the front door to open. Narumi walked through, shoulders slumped in exhaustion, but smiled as he spotted the four of them. “Naruto, you’re home. Sorry I wasn’t there; a chuunin decided to try his hand at fuinjutsu without any training at all. It was a bit of a mess. How did it go?” 

“It went pretty well, I think,” Naruto said, as they all settled around the table and Narumi went to get snacks and tea. “The Kyuubi threatened to eat me.” Narumi snorted, but didn’t say anything, so Naruto continued. “But he also said he’d fight with me, so I guess he didn’t really mean it.” 

“Cool,” Minori breathed, his eyes wide. “So you have access to the Kyuubi’s chakra?” 

“A bit,” Naruto said. “It’s kind of harmful in large doses, I guess—Rin explained it better, but it was kind of complicated—but I can use a little bit of it without losing control now.” 

He frowned, thinking back over his meeting with the Kyuubi. “He said that he could’ve beaten the Yondaime, but that he was being controlled. D’you know what he meant, Ji-chan?” 

Narumi’s hands stilled for a few moments before he went back to preparing their snack. “I wasn’t in the village then,” he said. “But there is a way to control the tailed beasts.” 

“It’s the Sharingan, isn’t it?” Sakura said, tentatively. “I read about it once. Madara Uchiha used the Kyuubi to fight against Hashirama Senju. That was when Mito Uzumaki sealed the Kyuubi and became the first jinchuuriki.” 

Itachi, to Naruto’s surprise, set down his brush and nodded. “That is correct. The Sharingan is capable of controlling the tailed beasts. However, it would take an exceptionally skilled user to be able to perform such a feat. The average Uchiha would not be capable of such a thing.” 

“Wait, so an Uchiha made the Kyuubi attack the village?” Naruto exclaimed. “But why?” 

Itachi glanced over at Narumi before nodding. “That does seem to be the likely conclusion, if the Kyuubi was truly controlled. That is one of the reasons why the Uchiha are largely distrusted by the village—although not as much as in previous years.” 

“The Uchiha are distrusted?” Naruto said, looking between Narumi and Itachi. “I didn’t notice that at all.” 

“Relations between the Uchiha and the rest of the village are much improved,” Itachi said. “It has been quite some time since the Kyuubi’s attack, and the Godaime has put a good deal of effort into mending bridges. There are some who still harbor resentment, of course.” 

“But why would an Uchiha attack the village?” Naruto said. “They’re part of the village too!” 

Narumi and Itachi exchanged another glance, the kind that said they knew something and weren’t about to share it. Which was normal, Naruto supposed. There were lots of things that Narumi couldn’t tell him for security reasons, but most of the time those things didn’t pertain to him so personally. 

“It may have been a . . . rogue element,” Itachi said, at last. 

“You mean a missing-nin?” Naruto said, considering it. “Yeah, I guess a missing-nin would have a grudge against the village, or they wouldn’t have left. But why?” 

Sakura twined a strand of hair around her finger, a sure sign that she was thinking hard about something. Minori, too, looked thoughtful. Before Naruto could ask them what they were thinking about, however, Narumi came over with a plate of snacks and cups of tea, and the conversation moved to other topics. 

Naruto asked them about it, later, when they sat in his bedroom, taking turns playing a game that he’d received for his last birthday. 

“I was trying to remember all the Uchiha missing-nin I’ve ever heard of,” Sakura admitted. “Madara is the most famous of them, of course, but he’s probably dead by now.”

“He’d be super old,” Minori agreed. “Older than Sandaime-jiji.” 

The three of them took a moment to contemplate this; the Sandaime already seemed impossibly old. 

“But there’s lots of missing Uchiha,” Minori continued. “They have the highest rate of going missing on missions out of any clan in Konoha. Most of it is because of bloodline theft, but sometimes bodies don’t turn up so there’s no way to tell if they were killed or if they just ran off.” 

“And of course, bloodline theft means that it doesn’t necessarily have to be an Uchiha who attacked Konoha,” Sakura added. “It could be someone with a stolen Sharingan.” 

Naruto shuddered. “Ugh, people do that? Just go around stealing eyeballs?” 

“Sometimes,” Minori said. “‘Course, it’s not really worth it. Apparently the chakra cost is so high for anyone who isn’t an Uchiha that you can only use it for a little bit at a time, and you can’t turn it off. Mostly they want to make Uchiha clones or new Uchiha babies or something.”

“Is that why Kakashi-sensei and Obito-sensei don’t get along with the Uchiha?” Sakura asked, only to immediately flush. “Ah, sorry, I don’t mean to pry, it’s probably something you don’t want to talk about.” 

Minori laughed and poked her cheek. “It’s okay, Sacchan! Don’t worry about it. But yeah, some of the Uchiha accused Daddy of bloodline theft. I don’t really remember it though, because I was so little.” 

“Who is your mom, anyways?” Naruto blurted. 

Sakura smacked him upside the head. “Naruto! Don’t be rude.” 

Naruto grimaced and rubbed the back of his head. “What? I was just asking.” 

“It’s none of your business,” Sakura said. 

“Nakkun, your turn!” Minori said, shoving the controller into Naruto’s hands just as the level started. Naruto swore and fumbled with the controller, narrowly avoiding the first of the enemies. Between mashing the buttons when it was his turn and heckling Minori or Sakura when it was their turn, it wasn’t long before the conversation had slipped to the back of his mind. 

***

Every genin team was required to have at least one member complete the first course of medical classes; those who were interested in specializing in the medical field could go on to further courses. Sakura had initially been interested only because of the possible applications to medical seals, which she had learned a little bit about from Narumi. However, she quickly found that she liked medical jutsu for itself, and, what was more, she actually had a talent for it. 

“The best chakra control I’ve seen in years,” was Shizune’s verdict. 

“Pretty damn good,” was Tsunade’s. 

Hinata was good at medical jutsu, too, at least when no one was paying attention to her. She tended to get nervous when Shizune actually came around to observe her. By the end of the first three months of medical training—interspersed with occasional missions and other training—Sakura had managed to heal her fish, and Hinata managed to do so as long as no one was watching her. 

Minori, on the other hand . . . 

Well, Sakura didn’t want to be mean. But Minori wasn’t good at medical jutsu. 

Hence the exploded fish. 

Tsunade stared down at the fish, hands on her hips. Hinata nervously pressed her fingers together. Sakura tried to give Minori a sympathetic look, but he was staring down at the fish, his usual smile absent from his face. 

Tsunade sighed. “Face it, kid. You just don’t have the chakra control to become a medic. You’d be better off giving up and focusing on ninjutsu or taijutsu or something.” 

Minori’s stared down at the fish, and then grinned at Tsunade. “I guess not, hehe.” He stepped back from the table, and walked backwards to the door, giving Sakura and Hinata a cheerful wave. “I’ll see you later!” 

Tsunade shook her head. “He could’ve at least cleaned up the fish.” 

Sakura stared at the door for a moment longer, wondering if maybe she should go after Minori. He’d seemed fine, though, and Tsunade was asking her to demonstrate her progress, so it would have to wait. 

At the end of the day, Hinata went to go talk to Rin, who was in charge of the civilian medic department; she’d taken an interest in the various healing salves and antidotes that Rin made, and had even sat in on a few of the classes Rin held on making them. Sakura went to Narumi’s house, where she found Naruto and Itachi both seated at the table. 

“Oh, senpai, you’re back,” she said, sitting across from him. “What are you working on?” 

“A genjutsu seal,” Itachi responded. Naruto made a face. 

Sakura pulled out her own work—an attempt at a medical seal, although she didn’t know how well it would work since Narumi didn’t know much about them—and studied it for a moment. “Have either of you seen Minori?” 

“Minori? Wasn’t he at that medical thing with you?” Naruto asked. “I haven’t seen him.”

“No, he left early.” She bit her lip. “I hope he’s okay. Tsunade was a bit harsh with him.” 

“He’ll be fine,” Naruto said. “It’s Minori. He’s always fine.” 

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” she said. Tomorrow they’d all meet up for training, and Minori would be his usual, cheerful self. She was sure of it. In the meantime, she had a seal to work on, and that was always fun. And—she snuck a glance up at Itachi, who was concentrating on a particularly difficult element of the seal—the company was pretty good, too. 

***

Minori had always found working in Orochimaru’s lab to be relaxing. Everyone was always busy with their own projects in the lab. Occasionally Anko might make a joke or say something rude, or Kabuto might ask Orochimaru about something, or Orochimaru might murmur some idle comment on whatever he was working on, but other than that the lab was silent but for the hum of the equipment and the slow drip of Minori’s poisons into the vial. 

Right now, it was just Minori and Orochimaru in the lab. Anko and Kabuto had both rushed off, claiming that they had to go to an important meeting of the utmost secrecy. Minori would have suspected they were on a date, but he’d seen Anko flirting with Shizune outside the hospital just the other day so he had his doubts. Of course, with Anko you never really knew what she was up to. 

“Mama,” he said, “is my chakra control good enough to be a medic?” 

“Have you successfully performed medical jutsu?” 

“No.” 

“Then no.” 

“Could it be?” 

“With enough training, perhaps.” Orochimaru hummed. “With training, nothing is beyond your reach, outside of perhaps bloodline techniques. And even then there are certain . . . methods . . . albeit ones that I have been restricted from using. Have you been training the Sharingan?” 

“Oh. Yes, I have,” he said. “I have two tomoe already. See?” 

He activated his Sharingan and looked at Orochimaru. “Excellent,” Orochimaru said. “Train it up to a full Sharingan by July.” 

“July? Why July?” 

Orochimaru simply chuckled. 

Minori huffed and went back to his work, turning over the problem of medical jutsu in his mind. Just thinking about it made him feel irritated. He’d never failed at anything before, at least not when he didn’t want to, and he was beginning to learn that he didn’t like it. He was  _ good at things _ . That was who he was. 

“Do you think I could master medical jutsu by July?” he asked. 

“Master? Certainly not. That would take years of work. Reaching a level of competency is a more reasonable goal,” Orochimaru said. “If you do so, I will give you a reward.” 

Minori turned that over in his head. Orochimaru’s rewards were always interesting, even if they weren’t always pleasant. “What kind of reward?” 

“You’ll find out. You will find live specimen in the storage room.” 

Sure enough, there was a tank of fish in the back room, along with several lizards and colorful frogs. Minori managed to catch a fish and took it with him into the room to get back to practicing his medical jutsu. 

Orochimaru did make him put a tarp over everything first, though. Probably for the best, considering how many fish Minori managed to explode over the course of the night, and the following day. He passed out briefly on the bed in Orochimaru’s lab, and woke up to the sound of a conversation. 

“I thought he might be here,” Kakashi said. “What’s he up to?” 

“Medical jutsu,” Orochimaru said. 

“Shouldn’t he be at the hospital school for that?” 

“Sending him there is a waste of time. He does not require Tsunade to hold his hand through every exploded fish.” 

“Ah. I thought it smelled funny in here. Still, I thought I should come take him home.” 

“Unnecessary. I plan to build up his immunity to a certain poison popular in Suna tomorrow.” 

“Makes sense. Well, I’ll explain to Obito. Don’t let him eat too much junk food. And make sure he’s in shape for a D-rank tomorrow afternoon.” 

“D-ranks are a waste of time.” 

“Well, his teammates want to see him, so he’s going. I was barely able to keep the hounds from baying at your door as it was.” 

“D-ranks will be permitted, so long as the Uzumaki boy remains far away from my laboratory.” 

“Thanks, Shishou. How’s his medical jutsu coming along?” 

“Should we wish to shock and horrify the enemy by exploding people using medical jutsu, we will be in good shape.” 

“Right. So not very good.” 

“He does not have a talent for medical jutsu. However, he is determined. In that sense, he is not unlike Kaede.” 

“. . . you know, I think that’s the first time I’ve ever heard you mention my mother.” 

“We were ‘friends,’ as she insisted on saying. She was irritating, and terrible at taijutsu and weapons, yet insisted on studying them and nothing else except for her clan’s techniques. That child is very much like her.” 

“. . . so you think he’s annoying?” 

“He is incredibly annoying. It is one of his talents. It is not one of yours, but nevertheless you are showing a remarkable affinity for it at the moment. I am in the middle of my work.” 

“Right, right, I’ll go. See you, Shishou.” 

The door opened and closed. 

“Your ‘pretending to sleep’ act needs polishing. You are obviously awake.” 

Minori sat up, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the light. “That obvious?” 

“Your breathing patterns are completely incorrect. I recommend studying by watching people sleep. Perhaps your parents,” Orochimaru said. 

“I think that would scare them,” Minori said. 

“In which case you need to improve your stealth.” 

Minori giggled. “Yeah, I guess. Do we have any more fish?” 

“Kabuto came by with more while you were asleep. You may proceed with the explosions. Just as soon as I inject this poison into you.” 

The weeks passed in a haze of bright laboratory lights and the stench of exploded fish. Hinata and Sakura continued with the first course in the medical school. Minori continued to explode fish. When he wasn’t exploding fish, he was trying anything that could improve his chakra control, from sitting on the ceiling to holding leaves to himself with chakra throughout the day. He even got yelled at by the police for walking home upside-down under a balcony. 

Whenever Anko chased him out of the lab for making it stink, he trained with the naginata and his Sharingan, mindful of what Orochimaru had said about July. He didn’t know what was happening in July, but if Orochimaru had mentioned it, it was bound to be important. 

When he finally healed the fish, he was so shocked that he stared at it for a solid thirty minutes. 

Orochimaru leaned over his shoulder. “An acceptable result.” 

Gingerly, Minori poked at the fish. It didn’t explode. Slowly, a grin spread across his face. “I did it. I did it!” 

He threw his arms around Orochimaru. Orochimaru stabbed him in the upper arm with a needle. “Ouch! What was that?” 

“A small dose of poison, nothing to be concerned about,” Orochimaru said. “Now, remove yourself from my person. I will retrieve your reward.” 

Minori waited as Orochimaru went to the area of the lab where only Orochimaru was allowed. Not that Minori really wanted to go in; he’d peeked inside once, and it was kind of creepy in there. 

Orochimaru hauled a slightly gooey body from the room and laid it out on the examination table, then gestured Minori closer. Minori wrinkled his nose as he stepped closer; it smelled kind of weird. The body itself looked exactly like Orochimaru. 

Orochimaru picked up a scalpel and made a neat cut down the body’s calf. “There you go,” he said. “Now you may continue your practice.” 

Minori swallowed. “What if I do it wrong, and it blows up?” 

“You will not,” Orochimaru said. “And if you do, you will be cleaning this laboratory from top to bottom.” 

Minori took a deep breath. He carefully regulated his chakra as it pooled around his hands, and slowly set his hand down on the body’s calf. At first, nothing happened, but Minori kept a careful hold on the amount of chakra he was putting out, and slowly, the wound began to close up. 

“Well done,” Kabuto said. Minori jumped, realizing he was no longer alone with Orochimaru. “Not bad for a first attempt. Now, there are a few things you can improve on—” 

Minori listened, and when Kabuto made another cut in the body, he healed it. 

And again. And again. And again. 

***

Summer came to Konoha, bringing with it the heat and humidity and the knowledge that the chuunin exams loomed ever closer. Narumi had no idea what was going to happen with them; Orochimaru clearly wasn’t going to attack, as he was still part of Konoha. He supposed that Suna might invade, although he wasn’t sure if they would without Oto backing them up and Orochimaru instigating things. 

Narumi figured it wasn’t much use worrying about things he couldn’t do anything about, and instead focused on the immediate things. 

Naruto was at the table, working on his most recent fuinjutsu project, which he had rambled about enthusiastically to Narumi. He was planning a set of nullification seals to use against Heiwa the next time they sparred, earth nullifying and water nullifying seals, to keep her from using the earth and water around them. He wanted to work on a fire one for Sasuke, but he wasn’t really sure how to nullify fire, when it came from inside Sasuke’s body and not from the environment. Narumi had some ideas, but he was waiting for Naruto to think of them himself. 

Narumi was sitting on the porch, a scroll balanced on one knee as he scribbled on it. Another variety of storage scroll that would hopefully come in handy. A knock on the wall, however, had him looking up from his work. Sakumo was leaning over him, his fist still positioned right above the wall. Narumi grinned. 

“Sakumo, hey,” he said. “Not too busy?” 

“Not at the moment,” Sakumo said. “You even get the real me, instead of a clone. Shogi?” 

Narumi nudged the shogi board with his foot. “You’re getting predictable in your age, old man.” 

“What can I say? Shikaku’s got me hooked,” Sakumo said. “You’re the only person who will play with me besides Minori.” 

“How’s the planning going?” Narumi asked as they took their seats at either end of the board. 

Last time Narumi had gone first, so this time Sakumo did. “As well as can be expected. Coordinating between several different villages and daimyo is always a pain. This is the first bit of free time I’ve had in weeks, and even now I have a clone working on paperwork in the office. Oh, but I did have some free time to look into what you asked about. Although I’m not really sure why you wanted me to look into a peace-seeking organization like the Akatsuki.” 

Narumi rested his head in his hand and smiled down at the board. “A peace-seeking organization, huh? But . . . is that really all they are?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you missed it, we have a new entry in the series, a short story about Minori and Heiwa as children, set when they were around 3-4 years old.


	36. Chapter 36

Naruto, Sakura, and Minori all stared at the bridge that led to their usual training ground. 

“Kakashi-sensei is late,” Naruto said. “Kakashi-sensei is never late. Is the world ending?” 

Minori bit his lip. “He was already gone when I left home . . . I hope he’s okay!” 

“Maybe he’s late because . . . he was on his way to the training ground, when he heard a call for help,” Sakura said. 

Naruto eagerly picked up the train of thought. “Maybe he’s late because he heard a call for help, and when he went to check it out, he saw a bunch of rogue ninja picking on some academy kids!” 

“He’s late because he heard a call for help, and when he checked it out, he saw a bunch of rogue ninja picking on academy kids, so he had to fight the ninja,” Minori continued. 

“He’s late because he heard a call for help, checked it out, saw a bunch of rogue ninja picking on kids, fought the ninja . . . and then the rogue ninja called for backup,” Sakura said. 

“He’s late because he heard a call for help, checked it out, saw a bunch of rogue ninja picking on kids, fought the ninja, who called for backup, so then he had to grab the kids and make a run for it!” Naruto said. 

“Who are you talking about?” 

“Daddy!” 

“Kakashi-sensei!” 

As one, they turned and pointed at him accusingly. “You’re late!” 

“Mah, mah,” Kakashi said, as he held aloft a stack of papers. “So accusatory of your sensei. I suppose you must not want these.” 

“Chuunin exam forms!” Minori shrieked. “You nominated us for the chuunin exams?” 

“Even if you don’t pass, it's a good experience, since they’re being held in Konoha this month,” Kakashi said. “Although I have confidence that each one of you could pass this exam. They aren’t that hard.” 

Naruto groaned. “We just graduated, and already I have to study for another exam? That’s cruel, sensei.” 

Kakashi chuckled. “Don’t worry, this isn’t the sort of test you hit the books for. Just good, hard training. By the time I’m done with you, you’re going to wish you’d never become genin.” 

He handed out the forms. “So, think about it, and only turn these in if you’re absolutely certain you want to participate. The exam starts in a week, and those papers are due tomorrow. You have until then to think about it. No training for today.” 

Kakashi left, leaving them with the forms. 

“Got a pen, Nakkun?” Minori asked. 

“Uh, yeah, right here.” Naruto handed Minori a pen, and watched as he filled out the paper with his information. “You don’t even need to think about it, huh?” 

“Nope,” Minori said, popping the ‘p’ loudly. 

“It would be a good experience,” Sakura agreed, as she pulled out a pen and began to fill out the form. “The villages take turns hosting them. The next village to host is Suna, followed by Uzushio, so Konoha won’t host the exams for another year and a half.” 

Naruto grinned and began to fill out his own form. “Let’s kick their asses, guys!” 

As soon as they filled out the forms, they hunted down Kakashi. They eventually tracked him down to a bookstore, where he was examining the shelf of strategy books. “Kakashi-sensei!” Naruto yelled, only to be quickly hushed by everyone else. “Kakashi-sensei, we filled out the forms.” 

“That was fast,” Kakashi said. “So, you all want to take them?” 

They nodded eagerly.

“That’s good. You can only participate with a full team,” he said. “If one of you hadn’t wanted to take it, I would have made you all wait for the next exam.” 

He folded the papers up and put them away. “I have to take these to the Hokage; if you need something to do, go take out a D-rank.” 

“I hate D-ranks. Still, I guess I could do with the pocket money,” Naruto sighed. “I’m gonna need to stock up on everything. I don’t suppose the Itachi-senpai supply store has anything available, Sakura?” 

“He’s not a supply store, Naruto,” Sakura said. “He’s just giving me things he and Izumi don’t use anymore.” 

“Yeah, like he doesn’t have a whole compound full of younger relatives to give that stuff to,” Naruto said. 

“They buy everything new. I told you, the high-end supplies are a lot cheaper for them, since they have their own stores,” Sakura said. 

“Uhuh. Sure, whatever you say,” Naruto teased. 

Sakura turned on her heel. “Let’s just go get a D-rank before all the good ones are gone. If we end up with that stupid Tora mission, I’m making you do it alone.” 

They ended up with a mission buying groceries for an old woman who lived alone, which wasn’t bad, as far as D-ranks went. She tipped them extra for getting back quickly, and then tipped them even more to put the groceries away. 

They took their wallets to the market next, and wandered from supply store to supply store. They weren’t the only ones, either; Naruto figured most of the genin their age or older had been signed up for the exams. 

He quickly caught sight of a familiar team. “Hey, Sasuke! Heiwa, Hinata! Did Obito-sensei sign you guys up for the chuunin exams?” 

“What? The chuunin exams?” Sasuke asked. “Did Kakashi sign you up?” 

“Yeah, we just filled out the forms.” 

“I’m going to find Obito,” Sasuke said, before turning on his heel and walking away. 

“Um, Sasuke, wait!” Hinata said. She glanced between Heiwa and Sasuke, and then gave them a polite bow before hurrying after Sasuke. Heiwa sighed, but joined them. 

MInori waved goodbye. “See you in the exams, Hei-tan!” 

“I wonder why Obito-sensei didn’t sign them up,” Sakura wondered. 

“He probably forgot,” Minori giggled. 

Sure enough, once they had finished their shopping and gone to find lunch, they came across Obito and his team at Ichiraku. Sasuke was glaring at Obito, who was sheepishly filling out forms. 

“Okay, you guys are all set,” he said. “I’ll bring these to the Hokage after lunch.” 

“I’ll do it,” Sasuke said. Before Obito could protest, Sasuke snatched up the stack of forms and stalked off. 

“How about you two? Want some lunch? Sensei’s treat,” Obito said. He twisted around and waved them over. “You guys too! I’m only buying one bowl for each of you though.” 

“Yeah! Ramen!” Naruto cheered

“Why is it always ramen?” Sakura sighed, even as she joined them at the booth. 

“Because it’s the best!” 

“We should get cake!” Minori declared. 

“Ramen!” 

“Cake!” 

“Can’t we eat something healthy for once?” Sakura said. 

“Oh, like you don’t get dango and tea with Itachi-senpai every single time you have fuinjutsu practice together,” Naruto said. 

“We’re all going to die of scurvy!” Obito laughed, before cheerfully gulping down the ramen broth. 

“And that’s why I have . . . this!” 

All of them stared at Teuchi in shock as he set a small plate down in front of them. “The Shinobi Palate Cleanser Fruit Plate! Guaranteed to make you a stronger ninja! Only 40 ryo!” 

“You made that up just now!” Naruto accused. 

Obito slapped a pile of coins down. “I’ll take six of ‘em, old man! None of you are allowed to leave until you finish your fruit.” 

“Bleh, melon,” Naruto said. 

Sakura slapped the back of his head. “Don’t be rude.” 

Naruto grimaced and wolfed down the fruit as quickly as possible so he could return to his ramen. 

“Are you looking forward to the chuunin exams?” 

“Yeah! I’m gonna kick their asses!” Naruto cheered. 

“Yeah!” Minori agreed. 

“The experience from this exam will be beneficial,” Heiwa said. “We’ll be more prepared to take them again in the future, which will give us an advantage over first-timers.” 

Naruto stuck out his tongue. “Who cares about that? I’m gonna pass them on the first try!” 

“That’s extremely unlikely.” 

“Says you!” Naruto slurped down the remainder of his ramen. “I’m gonna go train right now. Old man, Obito-sensei, thanks for the ramen! Come on, let’s go train. Kakashi-sensei gave us the day off, so we’ll just train without him.” 

Obito sighed and slid off his stool. “Well, there goes my day off. Come on, I’ll take over your training for the day. We’ll swing by the Hokage’s office and see if we can find Sasuke on the way. First one to find him gets to pick where we have dinner. Your chuunin exam training starts now!” 

***

For the next week, Kakashi and Obito had them training for the chuunin exams. They didn’t take any D-rank missions, just trained, sparred, and ran a lot of teamwork drills. Kakashi and Obito were big fans of teamwork drills. The genin were thoroughly sick of them by the time the week was up, especially Sasuke. 

Individually, Minori honed his skill with the naginata, while Sakura built up her genjutsu and ninjutsu repertoire. She liked to use the Headhunter Jutsu to grab Naruto and pull him underground when he least expected it. Naruto spent most of his time developing any new fuinjutsu seals that might be useful. Kakashi and Obito refused to tell them anything about what to expect, so they were going in blind. 

Narumi had also noticed a lot more foreign shinobi than was usual. None from Iwa or Kiri—they were still antagonistic towards Konoha and Uzushio, after the last war—but lots of Suna and Uzushio shinobi, and a few teams from the smaller villages along the borders. It was kind of fun to head out to lunch and find kids from Uzushio who he hadn’t seen in years, or walk down the street and run smack into another Uzumaki. He met up with Karin and her genin team, and talked to them occasionally. 

The closer they got to the exams, the more foreign shinobi flooded the streets. And not all of them were nice. 

Naruto had been walking back from a mission with his team when they heard a shout; without even thinking, the three of them ran towards the source of the noise, only to find two Suna shinobi, close to their age, facing off against a child. 

The boy from Suna had lifted the kid into the air, and as they watched, he shook the kid a little. “Watch where you’re going, brat!” 

“You watch where you’re going!” the kid retorted. 

Minori gasped. “Konohamaru!” 

The Suna shinobi looked at them, as did the kid. “Konohamaru? What kind of a stupid name is that?” the boy snorted. 

“Hah!” Konohamaru declared as he flailed wildly. “Take that, jerk! My friends are here.” 

Naruto leaned into whisper to Minori. “Uh, you know this kid?” 

“He’s the Sandaime’s grandson. We had to play together all the time when we were little. But I don’t really spend time with him anymore.” 

Naruto could see why; the little brat was still mouthing off and flailing, although it was pretty obvious he was about to get himself punched in the face. 

“Isn’t it kind of lame for a shinobi to pick on a little kid?” Naruto said. 

“I’m not little, I’m nine!” Konohamaru yelled. “And I’m in the academy, so I’m almost a ninja already, so there!” 

“Not to mention illegal,” Sakura interrupted, before Konohamaru could big himself an even bigger ditch. 

The boy made a face, but dropped Konohamaru, who scrambled away to hide behind Naruto’s team. The boy from Suna cracked his knuckles. “Fine, I guess you’ll do.” 

A stone whizzed through the air, striking the boy’s hand. “Hey!” he exclaimed, only to immediately fall silent. The girl beside him looked worried. 

“Kankuro. Stop making a fool of yourself.” 

Naruto looked up into the tree above them. A boy with hair as red as an Uzumaki’s stood on the lower branch, arms crossed over his chest, another stone held loosely in one hand. His green eyes roved over their group. 

Naruto shivered. He might have told off the other boy—Kankuro—but he certainly hadn’t done anything to decrease the tension. 

“It’s really not cool to pick on kids, ya know!” he exclaimed. “Especially when you’re in someone else’s village.” 

“I’d be careful,” Sakura said. “Fighting with civilians is grounds to get you ejected from the village, isn’t it?” 

Kankuro scowled. “The brat ran into me, not the other way around!” 

The girl cuffed him upside the head. “Shut it, Kankuro! You’re lucky there aren’t any jounin around. You.” She pointed at Sakura. “You’re taking the exam?” 

Sakura blinked. “We are.” 

The girl scowled at her. “Temari. I’ll see you in the ring. Let’s go, Kankuro.” 

The two of them retreated; Naruto, Minori, and Sakura stared at their retreating backs. “Well, that was weird,” Naruto said. “So. Lunch?” 

“Sounds good to me!” Minori said. 

“You.” 

Naruto turned, and saw the boy with the red hair still staring at him. He pointed to himself. 

“What is your name?” 

Naruto grinned at him. “Naruto Uzumaki! What’s yours?” 

“Gaara of the Desert. I will see you . . . in the exams.” 

The boy vanished in a swirl of sand without another word. Naruto made a face at his team. “Definitely weird.” 

***

The day of the exams arrived almost too quickly; before he knew it, Naruto found himself being handed a stack of lunches and ushered out the door by Narumi. He met Minori along the way, and Sakura met them at the facility where the exam was being held. 

They’d arrived early, just in case, but the building was already crowded. He spotted Sasuke, who actually looked a little excited, with his team, and a few other teams who had been in their class in the academy. Most of the genin, however, were older teams from Konoha or teams from other villages. A good third of them were from Uzushio alone. 

“Alright, let’s go!” Naruto declared. 

When they arrived at the assigned room, however, a crowd was gathered in front of the doors. 

“You should turn back now!” a pair of boys in front of the doors shouted. “Weaklings like you don’t have a chance of passing!” 

As he watched, a boy ran at them, only to be swiftly kicked back into the crowd. Naruto shoved up his sleeves and prepared to join them, only for Minori and Sakura to both stop him. 

He looked at them, and then at the sign above the door. “Lemme guess. Genjutsu?” 

They nodded, not wanting to draw attention to themselves, and withdrew for the stairs as subtly as possible. “Man, I wish I was better at that stuff,” Naruto sighed. 

Sasuke’s team joined them at the stairs. “You saw through it too, huh?” Naruto said. 

“The Sharingan can see through all genjutsu,” Sasuke said. 

Naruto elbowed him playfully. “Relying on your fancy eye powers again, huh?” 

“Sasuke is, um, very good at that . . . even without the Sharingan,” Hinata said hesitantly. 

They finally made it to the real exam room. It was quiet and tense, a far cry from the chaos of the room downstairs. 

“It’s kind of . . . uncomfortable in here,” Sakura said. 

Minori laughed, quickly drawing the ire of every single person in the room. “Of course it’s uncomfortable, silly! Everyone’s worried about failing.” 

Heiwa sighed. “We should find seats.” 

“No sitting next to your teammates,” a proctor said. 

They quickly chose their seats. Sakura sat in the front of the room, as she preferred, while Naruto sat in the row behind her, and Minori in the row behind him. Sasuke sat in the same row as Naruto, with Heiwa in the front and Hinata in the back. 

Slowly, other genin entered the room. Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji were the first ones Naruto recognized, which was a surprise; he would’ve thought Shikamaru and Choji were way too lazy to take the exam. He recognized Karin next, and waved to her eagerly until she took a seat in the same row. 

“Settle down,” said a man with grey hair and glasses, as he walked to the front of the room. “The exam will begin shortly. My name is Kabuto Yakushi, and I will be the proctor for this section of the exams.” 

The door burst open. “I can’t believe you almost made us miss the exam!” Kiba snapped. 

“This is false. Why? We were almost late because you were fooled by the genjutsu downstairs.” 

“Shino is right . . . dickless.” 

“ _Stop calling me that_!” 

Kabuto cleared his throat and looked at them menacingly. Kiba slunk to an open seat in the back, while Sai took the one in the middle and Shino took a seat in the front. 

“The proctors will now hand out the exam. This is a written test. Anyone who is caught cheating three times will be expelled from the exam. You must have at least one correct answer to pass.” He waited, for a minute, as the proctors handed out the exam. “You may begin.” 

Naruto glanced over the questions quickly. Most of them were really advanced stuff, way harder than what they had learned in the academy, the kind of thing that required calculus. He could probably get one of the simpler ones right, but he had a better idea—and with any luck, Sakura would have the same idea. 

Naruto began to write a seal on the paper, using the standard one Narumi had taught them rather than the slapdash, modified one he preferred. In the row ahead of him, Sakura was hard at work, hopefully on the same thing he was. If their seals matched up, they’d be able to form a proximity link between their papers. 

Naruto placed the last components, the ones that would establish the link based on proximity to an identical seal, and waited. 

Moments later, Sakura’s neat handwriting started to appear beneath the questions on his test. He nearly cheered.

While Sakura started on the first problem, Naruto took a look at the rest of them. One of them was actually a question about sealing, which he eagerly filled out. Another was about the history of Iwa, which he thought over until he noticed Minori’s handwriting filling the space; clearly, he’d copied either Naruto or Sakura when they were drawing the seal. 

“Kusa Team Two, fail,” a proctor announced. 

With that announcement, the floodgates opened. It seemed like every minute, a team was eliminated. Naruto looked up, now and then, just to check who was still in the running. 

Sasuke, Heiwa, and Hinata were there, unsurprisingly. All three of them were pretty smart. 

Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji’s team remained, which made sense; Ino’s family technique was really good for getting information and passing it along. 

Sai, Kiba, and Shino were still there . . . somehow. Naruto suspected bugs were involved. 

And Karin’s team was still there! That made him happy. 

The clocked ticked on, marking that they had five minutes left, and Naruto looked at the last question on the page. 

_Only two of your teammates can pass this exam. Which one of your teammates do you select to fail?_

A mark appeared from Sakura’s pen.

Naruto quickly set his pen to the paper. 

_Fail all of us or pass all of us. Team Seven is in this together!_

Sakura’s writing didn’t continue. Naruto grinned to himself in satisfaction. 

“Time’s up, pens down!” Kabuto declared at last. “Proctors, collect the exams and announce the teams that pass.” 

There were a lot of proctors, so many that they completely lined the walls of the room, so each proctor only got a few tests each. Naruto waited with baited breath. 

“Konoha Team Seven! Pass!” 

“Konoha Team Eight! Pass!” 

“Konoha Team Nine! Pass!” 

“Konoha Team Ten! Pass!” 

He couldn’t help it; he whooped in excitement. Sakura quickly turned around and hushed him, but she was smiling too.

Finally, the list of teams came to an end. “All other teams failed. If your team failed, please leave the room.” 

“This is bullshit!” a shinobi yelled. “It’s obviously rigged in favor of Konoha and Uzushio. I know we got at least one of those right.” 

“Perhaps you did—but did you correctly answer the one you needed to correctly answer? In life, you will have to make many decisions. Some of them have little impact. Others are life and death.” Kabuto smiled chillingly. “If you failed, please leave the room, or you will be forced to leave.” 

Still grumbling, the remaining teams that had failed left the room. 

“Those of you who remain did so because you correctly answered a specific question,” Kabuto said. “The final question on your exam. For some teams, each member said that they, personally, would be the one to fail. Some teams had each member name the same person. Some teams said that they would all fail. Each of these answers represents a different form of teamwork, something you will be in dire need of in the next section of the exam.” 

At his words, the glass in the windows shattered as something hurtled through. Naruto ducked under the desk to avoid the spray of glass. 

When he looked out, a woman stood in front of them, a banner proudly displayed behind her. 

_ANKO MITARASHI._

“Listen up, maggots!” she yelled. “I’m Anko Mitarashi, the proctor for the next stage of the exam. You’ve done a nice job of trimming the fat, Kabuto, but now it’s time for the experts to take over. You little pests had better be afraid of what’s coming! Meet at the entrance to training ground forty-four.” 

“Ooh, the Forest of Death!” Minori chirped. “Sounds fun.” 

“Uh, why do they call it that?” 

“You’ll see!” 

Naruto had to admit, the forest was impressive at first sight. The trees were even larger than the ones surrounding the village, and the entire thing was surrounded by a chain-link fence. “This is the Forest of Death!” Anko declared. “You’ll find all kinds of things in here. Man-eating animals, poisonous plants, anything a shinobi could dream of . . . and if that wasn’t enough, we’ve decided to make things a little more fun for you. First things first, though. Fill out these waivers, then we can get to the fun.” 

The teams quickly filled out the waivers and handed them in, receiving two pieces of cloth per team in exchange.

“Now, I’m sure all of you are curious about this little present. You kiddos are going to get through the Forest of Death . . . while tied together. Tie your wrists together, tie your ankles together, I don’t really care as long as one of your limbs is tied to a teammate’s. You aren’t allowed to remove these until the exam is over, and trust me, you won’t like the results if you remove them anyways. Don’t worry about ripping them by accident; they’re a lot stronger than they look. Now come on, get tying!” 

The other proctors came around to help them tie the pieces of cloth, probably to make sure they were tight enough. The three of them chose to tie their wrists together, with Minori in the middle. The proctor tied the cloth around their wrists tightly enough that there was no way they could wiggle out of them. 

Minori twisted his hands around until he was holding hands with both of them and swung their hands back and forth. “This is gonna be fun!” 

“Listen up, ‘cause I’m only saying this once!” Anko barked. “You have four hours to make it to the tower in the center of the forest. Personally, I thought that was too lenient, but my superiors are a soft touch. But that’s not your only limit: only the first eight teams to get to the tower will pass. As far as eliminating the competition goes . . . well, try not to kill anyone. You’ve all been assigned an entrance based on the color of your ties. Follow the proctors, and enter only when they tell you, or you’re eliminated.” 

Their tie was black, so they followed the group that had been assigned to their entrance. 

“Ready?” Naruto asked, as he reached into his pocket for a seal. “Close your eyes when the test starts.” 

Sakura and Minori grinned at him. “Ready.” 

The proctor raised his hand. “Begin!” 

The gate opened, and Naruto threw down the seal. The flash-bang activited in a flare of bright light he could see even through his closed eyes. They ran forward, opening their eyes as soon as the light faded. Naruto glanced behind him and saw no one; some of them had probably been caught in the blast, which was small but still big enough to knock someone out, and others were probably still stumbling around blindly. 

“Nice, Naruto!” Minori laughed. 

Naruto grinned. “Thanks! But I don’t think we should use that while we’re in the forest. Who knows what we’d run into. Sakura, genjutsu tags!” 

“Right!” 

Sakura applied a tag to each of them, a camouflage tag designed to last a full six hours. Anyone looking at them would go right by without seeing them, unless they got too close or unless they used senses other than sight to locate them. And if they got that close, they would be ready to take them out; Naruto had his knock-out seals at the ready. 

Their first attacker, surprisingly, wasn’t another team but a very hungry, very angry tiger. The tiger also happened to be immune to his knock-out seals, and was only dissuaded from following by the judicious application of explosive tags. 

“What the hell was that? A tiger? In Konoha?” 

“Oh, that just has to be an invasive species of some kind,” Sakura said. 

“Incoming!” Minori yelled. 

Naruto yelped as he was suddenly tugged to the side; all three of them tripped and stumbled over each other. “A little warning next time?” 

He was yanked down again as Minori threw himself against the ground, just as a kunai crackling with lightning flew overhead. Sakura made a few handsigns, and the earth rippled away from them. Their attackers yelped, and Naruto leapt to attack, only for Minori to smack into him and Sakura to trip and nearly send them all falling. 

“Okay, okay, from now on, we’re gonna have to be more vocal about what we do, even if it gives us away,” Naruto said. “Duck!” 

They dropped to the ground, under another barrage of kunai; their attackers remained hidden. “Sakura, cover me!” 

Sakura pressed her hands against the ground, this time to summon up a mud wall. Naruto summoned three clones, which transformed into copies of them. “Attack when the wall lowers. We’ll sneak off while they’re distracted.” 

Sakura lowered the wall, and the clones ran forward, holding hands to disguise the fact that they weren’t tied together. They ran on, leaving their clones to do battle in their stead, only for another kunai to come at them moments later. 

“Damn, it didn’t work!” Naruto snapped. 

“They must be using something other than sight to track us. Smell, maybe?” 

“I hope it’s not Karin,” Naruto muttered. “She’s really good at tracking with chakra.” 

“It doesn’t matter if she can track us if we can outrun her!” Minori said. “Let’s go! Super speed!” 

They put on an additional burst of speed. Occasionally, kunai flew through the air, coming dangerously close to skewering them, but they did their best to dodge. 

Help came from an unexpected sector. 

The tiger burst from the undergrowth just as they ran past. They heard a yelp, and then nothing. 

For a moment, they were silent. 

“The unexpected whimsies of nature,” Minori sighed dramatically. Naruto snorted. 

They kept running, unsure of whether the eight teams had passed already. Sakura kept time; they ran for one hour, then two. They passed a few unconscious teams, and briefly engaged with a few living ones, which were quickly dispatched with a combination of genjutsu and knock-out seals. They tried not to engage anyone for too long in favor of running harder and faster.

And then, finally, the doors of the tower loomed in front of them. They put on one final, desperate burst of speed and hurled themselves through the doors. They collapsed on the floor, not three feet inside the doors, gasping for breath. 

“Did we . . . make it?” Naruto gasped. 

“Congratulations!” 

All three of them looked up in shock. “Iruka-sensei!” 

Their old academy teacher smiled down at them. “I see you’ve all grown into incredible shinobi; I wanted to be here to greet you in case any of my students passed. You are the third team to pass.” 

“The third? Who came first?” Naruto asked. 

Iruka helped the three of them off the ground and untied them. “A team from Suna, and a team from Konoha that graduated the year above you. Best get out of the way in case someone else comes through; there’s a waiting room just over there.” 

The three of them trooped to the waiting room. It was about as tense as they’d expected, considering two teams from different villages were there. The team from Suna was actually the team they’d met before, with the boy named Gaara. The other team Naruto wasn’t familiar with, although one boy was clearly a Hyuuga and the other was wearing the ugliest green jumpsuit he’d ever seen. 

“You passed,” Gaara said. “Good.” 

Naruto gave him a thumbs-up. Gaara just stared at him. Kankuro and Temari shifted uncomfortably. 

“Yosh! My name is Rock Lee!” the boy in green declared. “It is excellent to meet other shinobi determined to pass this exam!” 

“I’m Tenten,” the girl on their team said. “It’s nice to meet other kunoichi who take this seriously.” 

“Ugh, I know, right?” Temari said. “I swear, half the ones I know are just boys this, boys that.” 

“Exactly! I really don’t understand them,” Tenten said. 

“Should you really be talking to the enemy?” Kankuro said. 

“Shut up, Kankuro. I could kick both of their asses any day, so there’s no harm in chatting,” she said. 

Tenten raised an eyebrow. “Oh, really? I’d like to see you try.” 

Temari smirked at her until Tenten blushed and looked away. “We’ll have to see where this exam takes us.” 

“I’m taking a nap. Wake me up when it’s time for the exam,” Kankuro muttered, before slumping on the couch and closing his eyes. 

The doors opened again, this time to admit a team from Kusa. They didn’t introduce themselves, and immediately walked to a distant corner of the room, where they could keep watch over everyone else. The tension in the room immediately increased by a couple notches. 

The doors opened shortly afterwards, this time to admit Sasuke and his team. Naruto grinned and waved him over. “Sasuke! You made it!” 

Sasuke clicked his tongue irritably even as he walked over to them. “Naruto. You’re here already? How long have you been here?” 

“Not that long. We were the third team. Gaara and Tenten’s teams beat us.” Naruto motioned to Tenten, who was discussing something with Sakura, and Gaara, who was still staring at them. 

“Hm. They must be strong,” Sasuke said. 

“Uh, yeah, probably. I don’t really know what they do,” Naruto admitted. 

“Um, well, Neji-nii-san is very strong . . .” Hinata said tentatively. 

Naruto nodded. “Makes sense. Wait, hold up, nii-san? That sour-looking dude is your brother? But you’re completely different!” 

“Oh, well, he’s my cousin . . . our fathers are brothers. And he is very strong, but I am . . . not,” Hinata whispered. 

“You’re super strong!” Naruto declared. 

Hinata stared at the floor. Cheering her up was kind of a work in progress. 

Heiwa looked around the room. “There are a lot of Konoha shinobi so far. I was hoping we would be able to see talents we can’t see on a daily basis.” 

The door opened, and Heiwa’s face fell slightly. “Of course, right as I say that . . .” 

Heiwa’s brother Nawanuke walked through the door, a scowl on his face. Since leaving the Academy, he’d grown out his hair and bleached it so that it resembled his father’s hair more than his mother’s. He was followed by a boy Naruto had seen with Sai and a girl who had also been in the year above them at the academy. Tenten waved the girl over with a cheerful call of, “Akane!” 

Nawanuke and the other boy lingered by the door as the boy scanned the room; his eyes immediately fell on Kankuro. “I see an opportunity.” 

“Shin, no,” Nawanuke said. 

Shin crept towards Kankuro, a grin on his face and a paintbrush in his hand. “Shin, yes.” he said. 

“He could be insane and might murder us when he wakes up,” Nawanuke said. 

“He will not. I will ensure it.” 

They all turned to look at Gaara. 

Nawanuke’s mouth opened and closed. “You aren’t going to stop us?” 

“It is a sufficient punishment for his lack of awareness,” Gaara said. 

Shin whistled happily as he applied the paintbrush to Kankuro’s face. Naruto didn’t really see the appeal, considering Kankuro’s face was already covered in paint. 

He was still painting when the door opened again to admit a familiar team. “Karin!” Naruto exclaimed, as he hurled himself forward and pulled her into a hug. 

“Naruto!”

“Karin!” 

“Naruto!” 

“Do you two have to do this every time?” Sakura said. 

“We can’t help it, we haven’t seen each other in literal years. Karin is, like, my sister!” Naruto declared. 

The door opened a third time. 

“Oh, my god, you guys. I totally broke a nail. This day is the worst!” 

Sakura’s mouth fell open. “Ino?” 

Ino tossed her long, silky ponytail over her shoulder and smirked at them. “Sakura! Nice to see you passed too. And Minori, oh, my, gosh. You would not believe what these two lugs put me through!” 

Tenten rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t that bad. Would you give it a rest? It’s girls like you who give kunoichi a bad name.” 

Ino’s eyes narrowed. “What did you say to me?” 

Shikamaru sighed and leaned against the wall, shutting his eyes as if he planned to take a nap right then and there. “So troublesome.” 

The door opened once again, this time to admit a proctor. Unlike Kabuto and Anko, he looked absolutely exhausted. “Save your fighting for the ring.” 

“Fighting? Is that the third part?” Naruto asked. 

“It’s the continuation of the second part,” he said. “I’ll explain more in the ring.” 

The eight teams made their way down to a large, circular arena. Naruto spotted all their teachers up in the balcony, looking down at them. 

“Right, to finish up the second part of the exam, we will have one-on-one fights. Those who win, make it to the final part of the exam. This is to show you that you have to expect the unexpected . . . or something. Questions? No? Good. Now, the first fight.” 

Sakura lowered her hand. 

The proctor motioned to a screen behind him. Names and images flashed, until eventually it ended on a pair of names. 

_MINORI HATAKE VS KANKURO_


	37. Chapter 37

“Wow, I’m up first? Lucky!” Minori cheered. “Let’s do our best, Kankuro-kun!” 

“U-um, yeah.” Kankuro scratched at his face. Naruto tried not to laugh; Shin had drawn a dick on him. 

“Everyone else, leave the arena until you’re called. You two, stand at the designated area.” 

Naruto made his way upstairs, and took up a position next to Kakashi and Sakura. Obito and his team stood on Kakashi’s other side. 

“Yeah, Minori!” Obito yelled. “Kick his ass, sweetheart!” 

Minori waved enthusiastically, looking more like he was at a festival or something than about to fight in an exam. “Hi, Daddy! Hi, Papa! Love you!” 

“Begin,” the proctor yawned. 

Minori flung senbon at Kankuro, as Kankuro hurled kunai at him. They dodged most of them, but not all. Even so, neither of them stopped moving. Minori unsealed his naginata and dashed forwards. Kankuro deflected his attacks with kunai or taijutsu, but wasn’t able to get close enough to get in an attack of his own. 

Minori grinned. “That’s pretty cool, Kankuro-kun!” 

“What do you mean? How have you not collapsed yet?” Kankuro demanded. 

“Using poison on a medic-nin is a pretty silly idea,” Minori said. “Just as silly as using it on a Suna-nin! But see, even if you were immune, you’d still have a little bit of a response. But nothing. So that tells me . . . you’re not really a person, are you?” 

Kankuro grinned. “You’re pretty sharp, for such a shrimp. I don’t see how it helps you though. Try this one on for size!” 

He leapt backwards and opened his mouth—only it wasn’t a human mouth, Naruto realized, but puppet’s. Needles flew from his mouth, so quickly Naruto could only see them because there were so many. 

Minori twirled his naginata as he ran forwards, deflecting some of the kunai but accepting hits from some of them. “That’s the thing about puppets, though!” he said cheerfully. “They’re made of wood!” 

He hurled his naginata through the air. Kankuro ducked out of the way, easily, but stepped right into Minori’s path. 

Minori’s fingers flashed through hand signs too fast for Naruto to make out what he was doing; an instant later, he opened his mouth and blew out a ball of flame that quickly consumed the wooden puppet. 

Kankuro, smoldering slightly, rolled out of the ball of flame that had once been his puppet. “My puppet!” 

“Sorry, Kankuro-kun!” Minori said. “I didn’t want you to start using poisons I wasn’t immune to, so I had to finish it quickly.” 

“Can you continue?” the proctor asked. 

“Of course I can fucking continue!” Kankuro snapped. “It’s just a puppet.” 

Despite his words, however, the destruction of his puppet had clearly left him off balance; he made a few attempts at keeping Minori at bay with wind jutsu and poisoned senbon, but he was leaving himself too open and acting too rashly; it wasn’t long before Minori had reclaimed his naginata and managed to pin Kankuro to the ground with the naginata at his throat. 

“Yield,” Kankuro muttered, after a few moments of struggling. 

“Match, Minori Hatake,” the proctor said. 

Minori left the arena with one final wave up at the stands where Naruto waited with their team. Kankuro remained in the arena a moment longer, watching as the proctors cleaned up the remains of his puppet, before joining his own team in the stands. 

When Minori reached the stands, he was biting his lip nervously. “I feel kinda bad,” he admitted. “I didn’t think he would be this upset about the puppet.” 

Kakashi rested a hand on his head. “You did your best, and so did he. He probably spent a lot of work on that puppet, so it meant a lot to him, but think of it this way. Now he gets to hone his craft and build an even better puppet.” 

Naruto pointed to the board as names flashed across it. “Look! Another match!” 

_ROCK LEE VS AKANE_

Kakashi winced. “Ah.” 

“What? What is it?” Naruto asked. 

“You’ll see,” Kakashi said. 

Naruto saw . . . kind of. He saw Akane move, and then he saw a green blur, and then she was on the ground. 

The proctor waited for a few seconds. Akane didn’t move. “Match, Rock Lee,” he yawned. 

“Holy shit!” Naruto whirled around. “Kakashi-sensei, what was that?” 

“Rock Lee is a protege of a man I know,” Kakashi said, tilting his head to the side. Naruto looked, and found a man in a green jumpsuit hugging Lee, tears streaming down both of their faces. “He’s terrible at ninjutsu and genjutsu, but he’s exceptional at taijutsu. A genius of hard work. For reference . . . the girl he beat just now? Was the second highest kunoichi in their class. Rock Lee was the dead last.” 

“I thought he was just some weirdo,” Naruto said, as he looked at Rock Lee with newfound respect. “I really, really hope I don’t have to fight him in the next round.” 

“Mah, Naruto, you have to pass first.” 

“I’ll totally pass!” 

“Look! Look! Next fight!” 

_SHIKAMARU NARA VS RYUJI_

With that last name, Naruto knew the second person had to be one of Karin’s teammates. And sure enough, one of the boys who had accompanied her made his way down to the arena. 

Shikamaru yawned. “Do I have to?” 

“I’ll play as much shogi as you want and let you go cloud watching whenever you want for a week if you win,” his sensei said. 

“Two weeks.” 

“A week and a half.” 

“Yeah, okay. I’ll do it.” 

For all that fuss, the match itself was kind of boring. Shikamaru spent a lot of time dodging Ryuji’s water techniques, while the other boy got more and more frustrated and aggressive. He managed to get Shikamaru up against the wall, and then froze.

“What?” the boy gasped. 

“You’re caught in my shadow,” Shikamaru said. “I made the hand signs while your vision was blocked by the water.” 

Naruto examined the ground, and saw that Shikamaru was standing in a patch of shadow by the wall; the shadow stretched across the ground to connect with Ryuji’s feet. Shikamaru drew a kunai and stepped forward until he and Ryuji stood directly in front of each other. He held the kunai to Ryuji’s throat.” 

“Match, Shikamaru,” the proctor said. 

“That was lame, Shikamaru,” Ino said. 

“Still won,” Shikamaru said.

Naruto looked at the wall, where the next match was already displayed. 

_GAARA VS SHIN_

“Shin, that’s the guy on your brother’s team, right Heiwa?” Sakura said. 

“He was in the year above you . . . could be interesting, if not for the matchup.” Kakashi sighed. “It’s too bad, he really is chuunin level. Although it may be for the best for him to remain with his team a little longer.” 

“Another bad matchup?” Naruto wondered. 

Kakashi nodded and motioned towards the arena, where the two fighters had already gathered. 

“Begin,” the proctor said. 

Shin drew his sword, but other than that, neither of them moved. 

Shin vanished in an instant, faster than Naruto could see. “Shunshin?” Sakura gasped. 

He reappeared behind Gaara, sword drawn and prepared to stab. His sword sank through Gaara’s shoulder, but Gaara crumbled into sand. 

“Sand?” Naruto wondered. 

There was no sign of Gaara; Shin prepared himself for an attack. 

He wasn’t ready, however, for the sand that exploded upwards, coating him entirely and solidifying into a cocoon. 

Gaara appeared out of the sand. “He is inside of my sand coffin. I can crush him in an instant.” 

The proctor cleared his throat. “Match, Gaara.” 

The sand melted away, dropping Shin to the ground, coughing and gasping for breath, but otherwise fine. The sand solidified into the gourd Gaara carried on his back as he left the arena to join his team. 

Shin did the same. “Ugh, I swallowed so much sand,” he said as he joined them. “How embarrassing. To be expected from the Kazekage’s son!” 

“Wait, that’s the Kazekage’s son?” Naruto said. 

“All three of them are the Kazekage’s children,” Shin said. “Their teacher is their mother’s brother.” 

Naruto looked at Kakashi, who nodded. “That’s right. The Kazekage most likely puts them through extensive training.” 

“Oh, Hei-tan! It’s your turn!” 

Naruto turned to look at the match announcement; Heiwa, of course, was familiar to him, but he actually recognized the name of her opponent as a boy from Uzushio. 

_HEIWA SENJU VS KESHIKI MIZUSHIMA_

The following fight was an elemental battle from start to finish. Heiwa first used an earth jutsu, which Naruto winced at; he could have easily told her that the ‘Mizushima’ name was a misnomer. Sure enough, Keshiki only laughed and threw out a fire jutsu, blowing out a jet of white-hot flame from his mouth. 

“White flames?” Sasuke asked. 

“Yeah, it’s pretty cool, right?” Naruto exclaimed. “The Mizushima clan has a history of glassblowing, so they have super hot, super precise flames!” 

He glanced to the side, noted that Sasuke’s sharingan was activated, and snickered. 

Heiwa, however, wasn’t hindered, quickly retaliating with a water jutsu. That had him on the defensive pretty quickly, and after a series of water jutsu she had him up against the wall with a kunai at his throat. 

“Match, Heiwa Senju!” the proctor announced. 

“Good job, Hei-tan!” Minori said as she rejoined them. 

Heiwa frowned at her arm. “He burned me with his first technique.” 

“O-oh, well, you could use this?” Hinata tentatively offered a small container. “It’s good for things like that . . . I made it myself. I’m sorry, but . . . I haven’t learned how to heal burns yet.” 

Heiwa smiled at her. “This is fine, Hinata.” 

“Look alive, Naruto!” Obito said. “You’re up.” 

_NARUTO UZUMAKI VS SHIORE_

“Wish my luck!” Naruto said, before jumping down into the ring. His opponent was already there, waiting for him.They looked kind of like an uglier version of that Orochimaru guy. Naruto still wasn’t sure whether they were a guy or a girl.

“Begin,” said the proctor.

Naruto immediately brought his hands together, summoning up both shadow clones and water clones. Across from him, the other guy did the same. When nothing happened, Naruto thought the jutsu had failed, but after a moment rats burst through the doors, ran down the walls, emerged from the ground—and not just small, household rats. Some of them were almost as big as he was.

“Behold,” Shiore cackled.

Naruto shook his leg as one of them attempted to bite through his pants. It flew away and vanished into the sea of rats. “Rats? What kind of a lousy summon is that?”

“They are not summons, but normal rats ensnared by the net of my mind. . . and they will feast on your flesh.”

“We’ll see about that!”

Naruto summoned up a horde of clones to deal with the rats while he went after Shiore. Shiore was quick to substitute himself with a rat to get away, but Naruto followed. They chased each other around the arena for some time, occasionally getting in a few hits before one of them substituted away. It couldn’t remain like that forever, though. Shiore was beginning to tire, but Naruto was still going strong.

Finally, Shiore leapt away, landing in the center of the arena. The rats gathered together and swarmed over him, coming together to form a gigantic rat monster.

Naruto gaped at it. “Oh, come on, that’s just stupid!”

The rat monster rushed at him. Naruto leapt away and pulled out so many explosive tags the rats couldn’t hope to evade them all. He hastily set up a barrier for himself, evading the rats all the while, and finally attached the tags to kunai and hurled them across the room.

The resulting explosion shook the room. When the smoke finally cleared, Shiore lay unconscious on the ground, surrounded by a pile of dead rats.

The proctor cleared his throat. “Match, Naruto.”

Naruto whooped and punched the air, and ran off to join his team as the proctors carried off Shiore and cleaned up the rats in preparation for the next match, which had already been announced.

_KARIN UZUMAKI VS SHIZEN_

From the start, it was clear the fight was set in favor of Karin. Her opponent’s arm was hanging limply, clearly in no state to be used. Naruto realized abruptly that none of them had been offered medical attention; this was clearly intentional, probably to see how they responded to fighting when they were unprepared for it. 

Shizen responded well to it, at first. He launched a brutal taijutsu assault on Karin. She dodged and twisted away, using the traditional Uzushio style, but he still managed to get a few good hits in. 

His fist collided with her face, and she leapt back and bit down on her own arm. Her injuries melted away, as if he had never given them to her in the first place. 

Karin slowly wore him down, healing herself whenever she got too injured, while he couldn’t do the same. Eventually, he simply collapsed from exhaustion, the famed Uzumaki Stamina having worn him out.

“Match, Karin!” 

Naruto thrust a fist in the air. “Yeah, Karin!” he cheered. “We’re going to the final part together!” 

Karin grinned and waved at him before heading to rejoin her own team. Naruto grinned at her retreating back before looking at the names now displayed on the screen. 

_SASUKE UCHIHA VS CHOJI AKAMICHI_

Sasuke immediately leapt down to the arena. Choji sighed. “This sounds hard. . .” 

“If you get down there and fight, I will buy you all you can eat at Yakiniku-Q,” his teacher said. “If you win, I’ll . . . buy you Yakiniku-Q every Friday for three weeks.” 

Choji munched on potato chips as he thought this offer over. “Yeah, okay,” he agreed. 

Sasuke waited impatiently for Choji to join him. “Yeah, Sasuke!” Naruto cheered. “You can do it!” 

“I don’t need you cheering me on!” Sasuke snapped. Naruto pulled a face at him.

Choji finally took his place, and the proctor called out, “Begin.” 

“Here I go! Human Bullet Tank!”

Choji expanded into a ball and rolled towards Sasuke, who made a series of handsigns and then brought his hands to his mouth. Flames streamed towards Choji who, in his current state, was unable to avoid them. 

“Hot! Hot!” 

Choji rolled around, desperately trying to put out the flames on his clothes, eventually running into the wall and collapsing back into his regular shape. His shirt had partially burned away in the back, and his skin had started to burn. 

Naruto winced. “That’s got to hurt.” 

“The medics can heal it easily; Sasuke didn’t use his full power,” Kakashi said. “But yes, in the moment it most likely hurts quite a bit.” 

“I forfeit,” Choji whimpered. 

A group of medics came out and helped Choji up. Sasuke walked up to him, exchanged a few words, and handed him something. 

“What was that?” Naruto asked when he returned. 

Sasuke ignored him, the jerk. “Hinata. I gave him your burn salve. Sorry.” 

“Oh, um, that’s okay . . . I have more. I didn’t think you kept it,” Hinata admitted quietly.

Sasuke looked away. “It was useful.” 

The wall proclaimed the next match. 

_TEMARI VS TENTEN_

Neither participant was one Naruto knew particularly well, so he wasn’t too invested in the outcome of this match. As it turned out, it was another bad match-up. Tenten was a weapons expert, but Temari had her massive, metal fan and wind jutsu. Tenten had a really cool technique, the Twin Rising Dragons, which involved unsealing massive amounts of weapons, but Temari swept them away just like that. Naruto had to admit that he was kind of disappointed at that point; he’d been rooting for the sealing technique. 

The girls parted somewhat amicably, and their names were quickly replaced by the next ones. 

_SAKURA HARUNO VS INO YAMANAKA_

Ino smirked. “You’re going down, Sakura!” 

“I won’t go easy on you just because we’re friends, Ino!” Sakura declared. 

The moment the proctor declared the match had begun, the two of them leapt into motion. Sakura threw a bunch at Ino, only for Ino to kick at her. Sakura hit the ground and rolled, and darted off in another direction. She threw a flurry of kunai, which Ino dodged or deflected with her own kunai as she ran at Sakura again. Sakura ducked under Ino’s punch, hitting the ground again, and ran off again. 

Ino growled. “Quit running away!” 

“Make me,” Sakura taunted. 

Ino ran at her again, this time throwing out a spray of senbon. Sakura dodged or ducked under them. Ino came at her with another flurry of kicks and punches, and once again, Sakura dropped to the ground and rolled away. 

Sakura ran off again; Ino threw shuriken and kunai at her, which Sakura dodged by dropping to the ground and allowing them to sail over her. 

“Would you stop that?” Ino yelled. “Take this seriously, dammit!” 

She threw more shuriken, followed by senbon, and then kunai. Sakura leapt backwards, but dropped to her knee quickly, as if winded. 

“You can’t run forever!” Ino taunted. She ran forward, getting closer to Sakura, but then stopped and pressed her hands together in a sign Naruto wasn’t familiar with. “Mind Transfer Jutsu!” 

Sakura pressed her hands to the ground, and a purple barrier flared up around Ino. “Four Seals Barrier,” she announced. 

Ino, from in the barrier, blinked at her. “Wha—? Wait, that whole time . . . you were setting up a barrier?” 

Sakura shrugged. “Sorry, Ino.” 

Ino snorted and put her hands on her hips. “Figures you’d have some weird-ass plan, you brainiac. Fine, I forfeit. I have no idea how to get out of this thing.” 

Sakura grinned and broke the seal. “Good, because if you’d been willing to wait it out, you would’ve gotten out in about half an hour.” 

“Wha—that’s dirty!” 

“You’re the one who forfeited!” 

Naruto looked away from their bickering to check the next name. 

_NAWANUKE SENJU VS HAYASHI_

“Yeah, Nawanuke!” Naruto cheered. 

Nawanuke glared at him. “Shut the fuck up!” 

“You can do it, Nawa-chan!” Minori said. 

“You shut the fuck up too!” 

As soon as the match began, Hayashi leapt back and began making handsigns, as Nawanuke did the same “Spirit Release!” he declared, long before Hayashi finished his attack. A moment later, Nawanuke’s body dropped to the ground. 

Hayashi blinked and lowered his hands. “I forfeit.” 

The proctor yawned. “Match, Nawanuke.” 

Hayashi blinked again, looking confused this time. 

“You lost,” the proctor said. “Now leave the arena.” 

Hayashi left, but Nawanuke still didn’t move. 

Heiwa sighed. “He’s stuck again.” 

His sensei eventually came down and removed Nawanuke’s body from the arena so the matches could continue. 

By then, everyone knew what the match was going to be—there were only two people left. Looking at the names still gave Naruto a kind of unpleasant feeling in his stomach. 

_HINATA HYUUGA VS NEJI HYUUGA_

Obito gave Hinata a big, cheerful thumbs up. “Go out there and do your best, Hinata!” 

Hinata nodded hesitantly and went down to join her cousin in the arena. Once she was gone, Obito sighed slightly. “Jeez, this is going to be a rough match.” 

“What do you mean?” Naruto asked. 

“Clan business. Basically, Hinata is part of the Main House, and Neji is part of the Branch House. The Hyuuga clan can be pretty nasty to their Branch House members, so Neji’s got a bit of a grudge. Understandable, really. The problem is he might take it out on Hinata.” 

Hinata and Neji stood across from each other. “Begin,” the proctor called. 

“Forfeit,” Neji commanded. “You have no hope of winning. It is your fate to lose.” 

“I—I won’t give up,” Hinata said. 

“So be it.” 

From then on, it was a straight-up taijutsu battle, both of them using the Gentle Fist Style. Naruto didn’t know much about the style beyond that Hinata and her clan used it, but even he could see that Hinata was outclassed from the beginning. 

Neji was saying something to her, and although Naruto couldn’t hear what he was saying, he could see Hinata falter. He gritted his teeth; someone as nice as Hinata didn’t deserve to lose to an asshole like Neji. “You can do it!” 

***

Sasuke hadn’t expected Hinata to win. She was nice enough, he supposed, but niceness didn’t make a strong shinobi. Hinata was weak, and her cousin Neji was strong. He had been right when he had said that Hinata was fated to lose. 

Sasuke watched their match with his Sharingan activated, watch as Neji scored four hits for each one of Hinata’s, disrupting the flow of her chakra with each tenketsu point he closed. 

Hinata faltered and collapsed to her knees. 

Sasuke couldn’t hear Neji, but from this angle he could read his lips. “Forfeit.” 

“You can do it!” Naruto yelled. 

Naruto was an idiot; Hinata was so obviously going to lose. She had practically lost already. Still, she got up. She faced Neji and attacked him again, even as he easily retaliated against each of her attacks. 

Sasuke felt sick. 

She should just give up. 

Neji caught in a particularly harsh blow, catching Hinata in the gut. She flew back several paces and spat out blood, only to stumble to her feet and run at him again. At this point, Neji was barely even trying, but Hinata refused to stop. 

Sasuke wondered if this was what his father had felt, faced with an enemy he couldn’t hope to defeat, but knowing for the sake of the village he couldn’t retreat. 

His mouth opened before he was fully aware of what he was doing. “Go, Hinata!” 

Hinata straightened to her full height, gathering strength from some unknown place. She ran forward, feinted to the side, and got in a good three blows, cutting of the flow of chakra to Neji’s arm. 

Neji retaliated. Hinata flew across the floor and didn’t get up. 

“I told you,” Neji said. “You were fated to lose.” 

The medics rushed out and gathered up Hinata. Obito said something, Sasuke didn’t hear what, and rushed away. Heiwa quickly followed him. 

Sasuke gritted his teeth and glared down at Neji, as beside him Naruto did the same. “Hey, Sasuke,” Naruto said. 

“What?” Sasuke spat. 

“I don’t care if it's you or me, but whichever one of us faces him needs to kick his ass.” 

Sasuke stared at Neji, memorizing the smug, superior look on his face. “Agreed.” 

Maybe Hinata had been fated to lose. Maybe his father had been fated to die. Maybe all of Sasuke’s hard work was for nothing, and one day he would face an opponent where the only possible outcome was his own death. All he knew was that Neji would get that look punched off his face, one way or another.

***

Obito rejoined them while the proctor was still conferring with some of the other administrators of the exam. “Good news, Hinata is going to be fine,” he said. “When she coughed up blood, I thought there might be internal bleeding, but turns out she just bit her own tongue. The worst she has is a nasty sprain.” 

“Neji has a grudge, but he knows how to use restraint,” Kakashi said. “His father would likely not be pleased if he seriously hurt Hinata.” 

“True. Really, I’m surprised Hizashi let this grudge go on for so long. I mean, didn’t he once . . . you know.” Obito glanced around, as if to make sure no one was listening in. “After what happened, Hizashi stopped holding a lot of his grudges against the Main Family, didn’t he? Or at least, he stopped showing it. We used to talk about that kind of thing a lot. You know, clan stuff.” 

“That may be why Neji holds such a grudge. His father won’t, so Neji will on his behalf,” Kakashi said. 

“I don’t care,” Sasuke said. “When is Hinata getting released?” 

“She should be fine to join us when we leave,” Obito assured him. He grinned and ruffled Sasuke’s hair, ignoring how Sasuke protested and shoved at him. “Looks like my cute little cousin is getting closer to his teammates!” 

“Ugh, shut up! And get off me! I’m not your cousin, you left the clan!” 

“And your mom let me back in,” Obito said cheerfully. 

“You turned her down!” 

“Still counts!” 

The proctor cleared his throat. “Could all the winners come down to the arena? I’m going to explain the next part.” 

The twelve genin who had won their matches gathered in the arena. “Yeah, so the next stage is going to be a one-on-one elimination bracket. Quarterfinals, semifinals, finals. Before you say anything, yes, I know the numbers don’t work. The finals are going to have three of you fighting each other at once. You have one month from today to prepare for your fights. Now, the bracket.” 

The proctor gestured behind him as their names appeared on the screen. 

MINORI HATAKE VS SHIKAMARU NARA

SASUKE UCHIHA VS KARIN UZUMAKI 

GAARA VS NAWANUKE SENJU

ROCK LEE VS TEMARI

NEJI HYUUGA VS HEIWA SENJU

NARUTO UZUMAKI VS SAKURA HARUNO

***

“Cheer up,” Obito said. “Hey, at least you all made it. That means you all have a chance of being promoted, even if you lose.” 

Naruto kicked at a stone. “But I have to fight Sakura! I don’t want to fight Sakura, she’s my teammate!” 

“Think of it this way. You can both stretch the match out and show off some of your talents,” Kakashi said. 

Sakura looked thoughtful. “That makes sense. We’re willing to work together, so we should use the match to showcase our abilities and demonstrate that we’re ready to be chuunin.” 

“Shikamaru’s gonna be hard,” Minori sulked. 

“Him? He’s the laziest guy we know!” Naruto exclaimed. 

“Yeah, but he’s super smart! He always beats me at shogi,” Minori said. 

“Tch. My fight is too easy,” Sasuke said. 

Naruto punched his arm. “Hey, don’t look down on the Uzumaki!” 

“She might be an Uzumaki, but she’s nowhere near your level. Idiot.” Sasuke sped up, walking away from them. 

Naruto blinked at his back. “Was that . . . a compliment?” 

“I look forward to beating Neji,” Heiwa said. 

Obito laughed and ruffled her hair. “That’s the spirit! Hey, there’s Hinata!” 

Naruto looked ahead, and sure enough, Sasuke and Hinata were standing by the exit, talking to each other “You . . . fought well,” Sasuke said awkwardly.

Hinata stammered. 

“Who’s ready for lunch?” Obito asked, smashing the tension with his usual delicacy. “We’ve got some stuff to discuss for the month ahead.” 

***

They avoided Yakiniku-Q so that Shikamaru and his team wouldn’t overhear them, and Ichiraku wasn’t an option because it was a street stall, so any passing teams could overhear them. Instead, they gathered at another restaurant, which served a variety of food, although they didn’t go there often. 

“So, obviously Kakashi and I are willing to train all three of you over this month,” Obito said. 

“However, some of you may want to spend the time working on more specialized training, with your own teachers,” Kakashi said. “If you already have someone in mind, that’s fine. If not, let us know, and we’ll find someone who can teach you what you’re interested in.” 

“I’m training with Itachi and my mother,” Sasuke said, immediately. 

“I have someone in mind, as well as a back-up,” Heiwa said. “I’ll speak to you if neither of those work out.” 

Naruto thought about it for a moment. “I guess I’ll just train with Ji-chan.” 

“Daddy, will you train with me?” Minori asked. “I have someone else I wanted to ask too, but that’s a secret!” 

“Of course,” Kakashi agreed. 

Sakura thought for a moment. “I suppose I’ll also train with Narumi-shishou and Kakashi-sensei, if that’s okay. And take more classes at the medical school.” 

Obito ruffled Hinata’s hair, making her squeak in surprise. “Looks like it’s just you and me, Hinata!” 

“B-but I didn’t get into the final round,” Hinata said. 

“So? You’re still my student. We’ll train so hard that you’ll kick everybody’s asses next time you take the test! Now, let’s eat. You’ll need the energy in the next month, believe me!”

Once they’d all finished eating, they went their separate ways, eager to get some rest after the long day they had just survived. Naruto was practically asleep on his feet by the time he made it home. “Ji-chan, I’m home. I made it to the final round.” 

“Congratulations. I knew you could do it.” Narumi pulled him into a brief hug. “You must be exhausted. Did you eat dinner?” 

“Yeah, Kakashi-sensei and Obito-sensei took us out. Oh, yeah, you’re free to train me, right? We have a month before the exams. I have to fight Sakura.” 

“Sakura? Really, that’s bad luck,” Narumi said. 

“Nah, not really. You know Heiwa’s brother Nawanuke, he has to fight Gaara,” Naruto said. “He beat Shin, the other guy on Nawanuke’s team, immediately! He just like, covered him in sand and was all, ‘I could crush him in an instant,’ so the proctor called the match.” 

“But Shin was fine?” 

“Oh, yeah, he was fine,” Naruto said. “Still, I dunno what I’d do against sand. Water or something, maybe? Oh, or maybe I’d turn it all into glass, like the Mizushima!” 

“Who else passed?” 

“Sakura, obviously, and Minori, Sasuke, Heiwa, Karin, Shikamaru Nawanuke, Gaara, Lee, Temari. Oh, and Neji.” 

“Neji?” 

“He’s Hinata’s cousin, I guess. He was kind of a jerk to Hinata during their fight. I mean, she was fine, but still! He’s attacking her for things that are totally not her fault,” Naruto said. “If I face him, I’m gonna beat the crap out of him! So we’ve gotta train super hard to I can beat him.” 

“About that,” Narumi said, a strange look in his eye. “There’s someone else you might want to train with. Jiraiya the Sannin is in the village until the exams are over—he was teammates with Orochimaru and Tsunade, and taught your father.” 

Naruto’s mouth fell open. “He taught my dad? He must be super strong!” 

Narumi laughed. “He is. He’s one of the strongest shinobi in the village. There’s no one better to train you for the exams. I’ll have him come by so you can talk to him.” 

Naruto whooped. ‘I’m gonna get taught by the same guy as my dad!” 

With this, he was positive he could beat Neji—no, forget Neji. He was going to win this thing!


	38. Chapter 38

Heiwa looked at the compound in front of her. It was modest, but still elegant. Simple, but still clearly wealthy. Flowering trees peaked over the top of the wall around the compound, and she could hear a small waterfall or creek somewhere inside. 

_SARUTOBI_ , read the nameplate by the door. 

Heiwa knocked firmly. Moments later, the door was opened by a woman somewhere between her parents and Obito-sensei in age. “Oh, Heiwa-chan. Can I help you?” 

“I’d like to see Sandaime-sama, please,” she said. 

The woman smiled the moment she heard Heiwa’s name. “Of course. Come inside.” 

Hewa stepped through the gate into a large, carefully kept garden. A river wound through it, leading to a pond where koi gathered. The woman stepped across a bridge, towards the house, and Heiwa followed. 

“Father,” the woman said. “Heiwa Senju is here to see you.” 

The Sandaime looked up from his shogi board. He was old, of course, but his age had done nothing to dim the spark of intelligence in his eyes. “Ah, Tsunade-chan’s daughter. Come here, Heiwa-chan. It’s been some time since I’ve seen you. Have a seat.” 

Heiwa took a seat on the other side of the shogi board. The Sandaime puffed on his pipe. She waited, trying her best to be patient. “Now, what can I do for you?” he said at last. 

“I made it to the third round of the chuunin exams. We have a tournament, and I have one month to train.” He nodded, and she suddenly felt a little embarrassed, telling him all these things he almost definitely knew. “I wanted to ask you to train me.” 

He nodded thoughtfully. “I see. Do you still play shogi, Heiwa-chan?” 

She blinked at the non sequitur. “I do, Sandaime-sama.” 

He chuckled. “So polite. I remember when you were little, you and your brothers used to call me Jii-chan . . . ah, but Kogane-kun is all grown up now, of course. My grandson is still young, but soon he will be taking the chuunin exams as well.” He set up the board, and allowed her to take the first move. “So, Heiwa-chan, why do you want me to teach you? There are plenty of shinobi younger and stronger than I am.” 

Heiwa took a breath and organized her arguments. “You are known as the Professor, or the God of Shinobi. You are proficient in all five elemental releases, and know more jutsu than anyone in the village, rivalled only by Orochimaru’s knowledge of ninjutsu. Furthermore, you were the student of the Nidaime. I want to master all five elements and become a Hokage like the Nidaime.” 

“And why is that?” 

“The Nidaime was responsible for much of the administration and infrastructure of the village. We still use those systems today, but they were developed generations ago. The village is in need of an overhaul to optimize it for the modern day,” she said. 

“I see. Quite a dream. Tell me, Heiwa-chan, do you know what the Will of Fire is?” 

“According to the Will of Fire, all the people of Konoha are a family, and the Hokage is responsible for that family,” she said. 

The Sandaime smiled at her. “And do you believe in the Will of Fire?” 

“I do,” she said, as firmly as she could. “More than an individual clans, I believe that the village is most important. We’re still living in compounds and sneering at each other like it’s the Warring States period, when we should be coexisting and working together for the benefit of the village. Right now, if you put an Uchiha and a Hyuuga on the same team, it will fall apart 99% of the time. That needs to change.” 

“And you think it can?” 

“I’m on a team with the younger son of the Uchiha clan head and older daughter of the Hyuuga clan head. I know it can.”

The Sandaime smiled and made his move. She stared at the board in dismay—checkmate. “Would you prefer to meet in the morning, or the afternoon?” 

Heiwa stared at him in shock. Slowly, a smile spread across her face. 

She had her teacher. 

***

“Sakura! Sakura, Itachi-kun is here to see you!” 

Sakura shot up in bed. “Eh? Itachi-senpai?” 

She scrambled towards the door, quickly running her fingers through her hair to straighten it, eager to get downstairs before her mother could say anything weird to him. “Itachi-senpai, what are you doing here?” 

“Sakura-san. I apologize for arriving without warning,” Itachi said. 

Sakura blushed as she realized she was still in her pajamas. Itachi acted like nothing was weird at all; he was so calm and composed. “It’s okay, senpai. What brings you here? I thought you would be training with Sasuke.” 

“Sasuke is training with our mother at the moment; Sasuke’s desire to train with me is born out of a desire to spend time with me in any form. Our mother is a skilled kunoichi who is more than equal to the task of training Sasuke.” Itachi produced a stack of papers. “This morning, I went to Shishou to ask him for additional scenarios for us to practice with. I believe they would be helpful for your training. Furthermore, you have the chakra control to be skilled with genjutsu, which Sasuke has no interest in. Your teammate, Naruto, has no talent with genjutsu, correct?” 

“No, um, he’s really terrible. I always have to break him out of them.” Sakura shook her head. “Itachi-senpai, you mean. . .you’re going to help me train?” 

“My talents with genjutsu and fuinjutsu are best put to use aiding you,” Itachi said. “My brother wishes to study with me, but in truth his interest in ninjutsu and shurikenjutsu means that our mother is best suited to teach him.” 

Itachi paused, seemingly waiting for a response. Sakura could only stare at him. 

“Additionally, Izumi wished for me to tell you that should you wish for another sparring partner, she is available on Saturday afternoons and Wednesday mornings,” Itachi said. 

“Oh, tell her I’ll take her up on that,” Sakura said automatically. “But . . . senpai, don’t you have better things to do?” 

“I have already spoken to the Hokage and told him I will be busy training you and my brother this month,” Itachi said. “There is nothing I would rather do.” 

“Oh.” She smiled hesitantly. “Come on in, then. We don’t have dango, but we have that tea you like, and I think some cookies?” 

“That would be lovely, thank you.” 

Itachi walked in, settled on the couch, and started setting up the scenario papers Narumi always gave them to train with. Sakura grinned and punched the air. Itachi-senpai wanted to teach her—he was going to teach her genjutsu, and everyone in the village knew he was the best at genjutsu. She’d explain herself to Kakashi and Narumi later; she was going to take advantage of Itachi’s offer for as long as it was available.

Right after she got dressed, of course.

***

“This is the key to your training this month.” 

Sasuke looked at his mother skeptically. “A piece of paper?” 

“Not just any piece of paper. Channel your chakra into it.” 

Sasuke accepted the paper and channeled his chakra into it. The paper immediately crinkled up. 

“Lightning,” Mikoto said. “Interesting.” 

“Interesting? What does that mean?” he asked. His mother raised an eyebrow at his demanding tone. “. . . please.” 

“Your father, your brother, and myself, all have fire natures,” his mother said. “Fire is the most common nature in the Uchiha clan—in all of Konoha, actually. It’s interesting that you have a lightning nature when everyone in your immediate family has fire nature. It’s a good thing; it means that people will expect you to have fire nature, and you can surprise them. However, it also means that I am not the best one to teach you ninjutsu—Kakashi Hatake has a lightning nature.” 

“Kakashi-sensei?” Sasuke thought back to all the times Obito had made them train with Naruto’s team, and came up blank. “I’ve never seen him use it.” 

“Lightning chakra is very volatile,” Mikoto said. “He wouldn’t be likely to use it against genin. If you ask him, I’m sure he would be willing to teach you some techniques. In the meantime, you and I will work on your fire jutsu and shurikenjutsu. Just because you have a different nature is no reason to slack off; having two natures mastered is an excellent way to prove you’re ready to become a jounin.” 

Sasuke had honestly never thought much of his mother’s ability as a ninja, beyond knowing that she was skilled with thrown weapons, that she was a jounin, and that his father must have thought she was strong. He quickly found himself revising his opinions. 

His mother wasn’t just skilled; she was a demon. 

He mentioned the technique he had copied from the boy Heiwa had fought, and from then on his mother had him working on his chakra control until he was holding leaves to his skin in his sleep so that he could fuel the fire and make it hotter than ever. If his flames weren’t flickering blue at the very least, it wasn’t good enough. 

He mentioned watching Itachi deflect shuriken and kunai off each other, and suddenly he found himself training to hit targets located at odd angles. He wondered about moving targets, and members of the clan were brought in to help him train for the exam, deflecting or dodging so that he really had to work at it if he wanted to hit them. 

He mentioned Karin Uzumaki’s ability to heal herself, and somehow ended up learning basic first aid at the medical school. He talked about her taijutsu, how she had twisted and turned away from danger, and ended up sparing with his mother, who had an uncanny ability to replicate the ability, so much so that he suspected she had copied the technique from someone. He did the same to his mother, and added the strangely fluid dodges and deflections to the more aggressive style favored by the Uchiha. 

Anything he mentioned somehow became involved in his training, so much so that he didn’t have time to even think about talking to Kakashi for the first few days. 

“Lightning, huh?” Kakashi said. “I have one. I developed it, but was never able to use it safely. Watch carefully. Without the Sharingan.” 

Sasuke watched as Kakashi summoned lightning chakra to his hand. For a moment, he was distracted by the sound; it sounded like birds chirping. 

Then Kakashi ran forward, so fast Sasuke could barely see him, and obliterated the tree in front of him. 

“What was that? Why were you never able to use it safely?” he demanded. 

“The Chidori,” Kakashi said. “An immensely powerful technique that requires immense concentration and a large amount of chakra. The chakra requirement is one drawback; at my current level, I could do four or five safely. Six, maybe seven if I pushed myself, but I would be in bad shape after that. The other drawback is that this technique requires you to move in a straight line, and that it creates tunnel vision that makes it difficult to see where you are going. This means that it is difficult to see attacks coming, and more so to avoid them. After several near misses, I gave up on using this technique. With the Sharingan, however, you could be capable of using it.” 

“Because it would help me see,” Sasuke said. 

“Exactly. I also believe this technique would be suited to you for other reasons.” 

Sasuke stared at the obliterated tree; did Kakashi mean that the technique suited him because it was powerful?

Kakashi gently put a hand on his head. “This technique is meant to protect people, Sasuke.” 

Sasuke looked at his hand, and thought of his father, who had died to protect all the people of the village, all the people that were important to him. 

“Teach me. Please.” 

***

“Shicchan!” 

Shisui greeted Minori with a grin. At least, Minori thought he did. Shisui was kind of obscured by the massive piles of paperwork in front of him. “My favorite not-cousin! What can I do for you today?” 

Minori bounced up to the other side of the desk so he could actually see all of Shisui, and not just the upper half of his face. “Did you hear? I made it to the next round of the chuunin exams!” 

“I totally did!” Shisui said, and held out a hand. “Up high!” Minori smacked his hand, and Shisui moved it down. “Down low! In between—whoops, too slow!” Minori scowled at him playfully. “So, what can I do for you, little cousin?” 

“Weeell,” Minori said. He hopped up on the desk, careful not to displace the piles of paperwork. “It’s about the exams. You know we have a month to train, right?” 

“Oh, yeah, Sakumo mentioned that. Apparently the Kazekage is busy this week, and the Daimyo is busy the week after, so they had to settle for having the final round in a month.” Shisui rolled his eye. “Jeez, you really have no idea what the real reason behind some of this stuff is until you’re in the thick of it. ‘Time to prepare and gather information’ is just an excuse. The bigwigs were just all too busy to make it!” Shisui sighed. 

Minori eyed the dangerously tall piles of paperwork. “I hope you’re not too busy, Nii-chan.” 

“Are you trying to butter me up? You’re trying to butter me up,” Shisui said. 

Minori grinned at him. “Is it working?” 

“Ah, what the hell. Yeah, it’s working. You would not believe the stuff Sakumo has me studying. All the laws going back to the foundation of the village. Every decision made by the council. The manuscripts from every important meeting ever. If I’d known there was this much studying involved in being Hokage, I would never have agreed,” Shisui sighed. “Save me, please.” 

Minori clapped his hands together. “Yay! Shicchan-nii-chan, I want you to teach me how to do shunshin!” 

“Shunshin, huh?” Shisui said. “Sure, why not. I could do with stretching my legs for a bit.” 

“Oh, but we gotta keep it a secret, ‘kay? I don’t want anyone to know,” Minori said. 

“I won’t tell a soul. Cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye.” Shisui winked at him. He could have been blinking, but Minori was pretty sure it was a wink. “There, now you know I’m serious.” 

“Daddy always says, ‘pinky promise, and if I lie I will swallow a thousand needles,’” Minori said. 

Shisui grimaced. “Ugh, really? That’s even worse.” He stood and then knelt down with his back to Minori. “Here, hop on. I’ll take us to train somewhere no one will find us.” 

MInori cheered and climbed onto Shisui’s back. Shisui stood, adjusted his grip on Minori, and then they were flying. The village soared past them, so quickly Minori had to activate his Sharingan to see where they were going. 

Minori laughed with delight when they finally came to a stop in a small clearing. “Shicchan, that was amazing! You have to teach me!” 

“Sure thing, little cousin. Just watch. You’re pretty sharp. Plus, it’s way easier to do when you have the Sharingan activated.” 

Minori activated his Sharingan and watched as Shisui made the signs, memorized the way his chakra flowed through his body, and tracked him as he moved. This time, Minori could just barely see him move as he ran across the clearing.

Shisui stopped, and Minori deactivated his Sharingan. “Wow, Shicchan, you’re amazing!”

“You give it a try,” Shisui said. 

Minori made the seal, feeling the way the chakra flowed through his body, mimicking what Shisui had done. He moved forward, the world blurring around him—

And smacked into a tree. 

Shisui burst out laughing. Minori blinked at the sky, dazed. “Oh, gods, you and Itachi! You did exactly the same thing. You geniuses, always trying to run before you can walk.” 

“That tree came out of nowhere. Not fair,” Minori complained. 

Shisui, still laughing, reached down and gave him a hand up. “Come on, little cousin, give it another try. One step at a time.” 

***

“Two palms! Four palms! Eight palms! Sixteen palms! Thirty-two palms!” Neji collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. “Fifty . . . fifty-eight palms.” 

“Very good, Neji. You’re improving every time,” his father praised. Neji lifted his head just enough to see his father’s small, proud smile, which was so often absent from his face these days. 

The door burst open. “Hizashi-sama!” Hideki, the branch house member who had offered to stand guard for their practice today, burst in through the doors. “Hiashi-sama has returned. He’s heading straight for the branch house.” 

Hizashi nodded firmly. “Thank you for letting me know. Neji, work on the Gentle Fist style.” 

Neji assumed a stance and worked through the basics of the Gentle Fist style, continuing even when the door opened. “Otouto,” Hiashi said. “I require Neji for Hanabi’s training.” 

“Of course, Nii-sama,” Hizashi said. 

Neji glanced at his father, who nodded. If Neji was training with Hanabi, he might have a chance to observe the main house techniques. It was slim, however; as the younger daughter, Hanabi was fated to join the branch house as soon as Hinata assumed leadership of the clan. 

He followed behind Hiashi as he was led through the Hyuuga compound, from the area where the branch house was situated, along the edges, to the main house at the center. A garden separated the two. It was there that he saw Hinata, sitting with a book and some flowers. A bruise bloomed on her cheek, dark and purple. 

Disgust filled him at the sight of her, sitting there in her delicate kimono. Hinata was weak, and would only ever surpass him due to the fate of their birth. Their fathers were identical twins; Neji and Hinata might as well have been siblings with different mothers, but because his father was younger, Neji was sentenced to be part of the branch house from birth to death. 

Hinata looked up. 

Neji looked away from her and followed Hiashi to the dojo used by the main house. It was larger than the one in the branch house, but was empty except for the two of them and Hanabi. 

Hiashi sat at one end of the room, while Neji stood across from Hanabi in the center. 

“Begin,” Hiashi said. 

Neji launched his assault immediately. Even at her age, Hanabi was better than Hinata, more willing to push her attacks rather than falling back immediately. Even so, Neji soon had her on the ropes, gasping for breath. 

Hanabi glanced towards her father, who nodded. Hanabi adjusted her stance, Neji’s eyes widened. 

“Two palms! Four palms! Eight palms! Sixteen palms!” 

He could have retaliated; already, he could do nearly the full technique, not this quartered version that Hanabi was using. Instead, he allowed Hanabi to make her attack and close his tenketsu points, instead focusing on memorizing everything she did. Hanabi was clearly receiving lessons directly from her father, instead of learning from observing and attempting to replicate the attack. 

Hanabi stopped after only sixteen palms, gasping for breath but clearly proud of herself. Neji opened his tenketsu points again, allowing his chakra to flow freely. 

“Good,” Hiashi said. “Again.” 

Neji watched and listened as Hanabi attacked again and again and Hiashi corrected Hanabi’s technique. Hanabi was nowhere near ready to do the full Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four palms, but Neji could extrapolate from what Hiashi told her. He left tired and bruised, but satisfied with the way the afternoon had gone. Clearly, Hiashi had no idea what he and his father were doing when no one was watching. 

Hinata had left the garden; Neji did not look for her, but he did find a tin of bruise salve outside his bedroom door. He threw it away without a second glance. 

He did not need pity from someone as weak as Hinata. 

He would show her—he would show the entire main house—that the branch house was not weak. 

***

“When Kakashi and I were kids, I thought he was a total jackass.” 

Hinata looked up from her ice cream to look at Obito. He had picked her up from the Hyuuga compound, taken her to get ice cream, and brought her to the top of the Hokage monument without saying more than a few words. Sensing he had more to say, she stayed quiet. 

“He used to stare at me and then deny doing it, he would always critique me when we sparred, he was kind of arrogant and closed-off, he got everything right on the first try . . . and I was a dorky goofball who couldn’t do anything right,” Obito chuckled. “Come to think of it, I think he was staring at me because he had a crush on me. But, uh, that’s not relevant right now. The thing is, I was kind of like you, in a way. I was no good at fighting. I wasn’t some super genius like Kakashi or Minato-sensei, I didn’t have good chakra control like Rin. I was thirteen years old, and I hadn’t awoken the Sharingan, so as far as my clan was concerned, I was an absolute failure. I wanted to protect everyone I loved, but I wasn’t skilled enough to back up my words.” 

Obito took a deep breath. Hinata knew this was something very difficult to speak about, and fretted for a moment, trying to find the words to tell him that he didn’t have to tell her this if it was too painful. 

“Rin was kidnapped on a mission. Kakashi and I went to save her, but Kakashi was kidnapped in the process of saving Rin. For a long time, I thought that he had died. Because I hadn’t activated the Sharingan quickly enough, or because I hadn’t studied the clan’s ninjutsu enough, or because I hadn’t practiced the clan’s taijutsu style enough. And you know what I did?” 

“Did—did you go to your clan and practice more?” Hinata asked. 

“Nope. I went to Kakashi’s dad.” Obito grinned at her surprised expression. “I know, right? Completely different from anything the Uchiha clan did. He doesn’t have a dojutsu or anything fancy like that, he’s an expert at lightning ninjutsu but never uses it, he prefers the tanto to fighting with his hands, he summons giant wolves instead of something more elegant like crows, or whatever. And I learned more from him in a year than I ever learned with the Uchiha clan.” 

“You see, Hinata, sometimes . . . okay, I’m just gonna say it. Sometimes clans are absolute shit.” Hinata let out a surprised, shocked giggle. Obito grinned at her. “Come on, you know it’s true! They’ve got one way of doing their thing, and if you’re good at it, you’re a genius! If you’re bad at it, you’re a complete failure. So maybe you’re not as good at the Gentle Fist style as Neji is, or as your little sister is. Maybe your Byakugan can’t see as far as theirs can. Maybe your personality isn’t well suited to fighting people you care about, even in sparring. There’s more than one road to take.” 

Hinata looked down at the village spread out beneath them. “What if . . . what if I’m not good at anything?” 

“Everyone has something they’re good at. You just have to find it. I mean, I never imagined I would be the Hokage’s apprentice, and here I am,” Obito said. He nudged her. “And hey, I hear from Tsunade that you’ve been kicking ass in the medical program.” 

Hinata blushed and pressed her fingers together nervously. “I-I’m not that good . . .” 

“Tsunade said the only person in the program with better chakra control than you is Sakura,” Obito said. “You have talent, Hinata. And I’m pretty sure that Byakugan is pretty useful when it comes to treating injuries, am I right?” 

Tentatively, Hinata nodded; she could identify injuries faster than even Sakura—although she wasn’t always certain she was right, and preferred to keep quiet until Sakura confirmed her suspicions. 

“So, kick-ass chakra control, awesome Byakugan . . . sounds like you could be a pretty badass medic, if you ask me,” Obito said, with a grin. “Who knows? Maybe you could even be the next Tsunade! Wham, bam, craters!” 

Hinata blushed at the mere thought of comparing herself to someone as incredible as Tsunade. “I couldn’t possibly do that!” 

“You never know!” Obito leapt to his feet. “Come on, Hinata, let’s try it out!” 

“Right here?” she yelped. 

Obito took in their surrounding and laughed sheepishly. “Uh, good point. People might get mad if we put holes in the Hokage. Let’s go to the training ground instead.” 

Obito set off down the mountain, pausing at her side to ruffle her hair. “Think of it this way. When you can punch a hole through a mountain, there’s no one you won’t be able to protect.” 

Hinata stared at Obito’s retreating back for a moment before running after him. She still wasn’t certain she would ever amount to much of anything, or that she would ever find anything she was really good at. But . . . it made her feel warm with happiness to know that at least one person believed she could be good at something. 

Even if he was about to make her punch holes in mountains. 

***

“Jiraiya is late, he says. It’ll be easy to find him, he says. He’s super weird-looking, you can’t miss him, he says.” Naruto scowled and kicked a pebble along the ground. “How hard can it be to find one old dude? I could be training!” 

A sudden burst of laughter interrupted his rant. Ordinarily, Naruto wouldn’t have paid it much attention, but this laughter was creepy. Like, he’d heard Orochimaru laugh once and thought he was going to die on the spot, but this was even creepier. He turned around, looking for the culprit, and found a weird old guy crouched in front of a fence. 

Naruto’s scowl grew when he realized where exactly that fence led—one of the most popular onsen in Konoha. He’d gone there once or twice with Narumi, and he knew for a fact that a bunch of the girls in his class went there when they had special discounts on massages and stuff. Sakura went there with that friend of hers in the Uchiha clan, Izumi or whatever. 

“Oh, yeah,” the old man laughed creepily. 

Naruto pulled out a seal and crept forwards. The man was so distracted by whatever he was seeing that he didn’t even notice Naruto approaching until Naruto had slapped the seal directly onto his back. 

Naruto activated the seal before the man could retaliate. “Help, there’s a creepy old guy perving on the woman’s bath!” he shouted, and ran off. 

The man, frozen in place by the seal, was promptly set upon by an onsen full of furious shinobi. Naruto observed from a distance, snickering as justice was served. The old man deserved it, in Naruto’s opinion. 

Satisfied with a job well done, Naruto set off through the village in search of the elusive Jiraiya. He hunted high and low for him, going as far as asking Sakumo, Tsunade, Dan, and even Orochimaru if they had seen him, each time coming away empty handed. Finally, as the sun sank below the horizon, Naruto gave it up as a bad job and returned home; he’d wasted enough of his training time. 

As soon as he arrived home, he realized they had company. Of course, Jiraiya must have arrived while Naruto was out scouring the village for him. 

Naruto slid open the door. “Ji-chan, I’m home!” 

“Welcome home! Sorry to send you out for nothing, Jiraiya found his way here.” 

Naruto stared at the man in his house. The man stared back at him. 

Mane of white hair. Big scroll on his back. Really, really weird clothes. 

They pointed at each other. “It’s you!” they exclaimed. 

“The little brat from the bathhouse!” 

“The creepy pervert spying on the bathhouse!” 

“Hey, that was research!” 

“Yeah, right,” Naruto scoffed. His eyes landed on a bright orange book in the middle of the table. Narumi glanced at it and quickly stuffed it under his pillow. “Ah, that’s that pervy book! You’ve corrupted Ji-chan!” 

“Hey, he was corrupted before I met him!” Jiraiya protested. 

“Liar!” Naruto scowled at him. 

Jiraiya jabbed his finger at him. “You don’t know half of what this guy can do! He once invented a jutsu that—!” 

Narumi cleared his throat. “Uh, how about we talk about that some other time? Far, far in the future.” 

Jiraiya threw his arms up. “That jutsu is the most powerful jutsu in the world! It deserves to be passed on.” 

“What? You have a super powerful jutsu you haven’t told me about? You’ve got to teach me, Ji-chan!” 

“It knocked me out instantly!” Jiraiya declared. 

Naruto scowled at him. “I don’t care about that. You’re weird.” 

“Like I care what some mouthy brat thinks of me!” 

The two of them scowled at each other until Naruto turned around. “Whatever, I’m going to go train. I’m not going to learn anything from you, you’re creepy.” 

“Hold it right there, shrimp.” 

In an instant, Naruto found himself dangling in the air. He swiped at Jiraiya. “Hey, put me down!” 

“Sorry about this, Narumi,” Jiraiya said, as he tossed Naruto over his shoulder. “I’m gonna borrow him for a bit.” 

“Bring him back in one piece!” Narumi called. 

Naruto squirmed as Jiraiya hauled him away from the house, trying to reach his seals. Eventually, he gave up and bit his thumb until it bled so he could scrawl a quick seal on Jiraiya’s back. He activated it to trigger a small explosion, not large enough to do any damage, but sufficient as a distraction. Jiraiya yelped in shock, his grip loosening just enough for Naruto to leap away. 

“Wha—hey, you brat!” 

Naruto stuck out his tongue. “Just try to catch me, old man!” 

He darted away, Jiraiya hot on his heels, towards Minori’s house. Kakashi and Obito could beat this creep no problem, and even if they weren’t home, he could team up with Minori to defeat him. 

“Okay, that’s enough! Kuchiyose! Gama, grab him!” 

A wet, slimy tongue wrapped around Naruto’s waist and lifted him into the air. Naruto scowled at Jiraiya, who stood on top of a toad, looking at him in exasperation. “Got any more tricks up your sleeve, kid?” 

Naruto wriggled, trying to get his arms free enough to draw a seal or get to one of the pre-drawn seals stored in his pocket. The toad’s tongue only tightened. “I’ll think of something,” Naruto grunted, as he attempted to kick the toad’s tongue until he let it go. “Using summons is cheating.” 

“We’re shinobi, kid,” Jiraiya said. “Cheating is the name of the game.” 

“I can’t use summons,” Naruto sulked. 

“Would you like to?” 

Naruto blinked at him. “What do you mean?” 

Jiraiya held up a scroll. “This here is the toad summoning scroll. The last two people to have signed it are me . . . and my student.” 

Naruto’s eyes widened. “You mean, my—I mean, the Yondaime?” 

Jiraiya smirked. “That’s right, kid. Now, I’ll teach you how to summon toads, since my good friend Narumi asked . . . so long as you say, ‘Please, Great Jiraiya-sama the Toad Sage, teach me how to summon!’” 

“No way! You’re no toad sage, you’re the sage of perverts! The pervy sage! Put me down, I’m gonna to train with Ji-chan!” 

“Narumi can’t teach you how to summon, shrimp.” 

Naruto scowled at him. “Fine. But I’m still not saying that. I’m a ninja of my word, ya know!” 

“What a cheesy line,” Jiraiya laughed. “Fine, Gama, go ahead and put him down. You’ve got a lot to learn, kid, and only one month to learn it in. So we’d better get to work.” 


	39. Chapter 39

Crowds streamed into the arena bright and early on the day of the final segment of the exams. Naruto, who was seated with his team in the area reserved for competitors and their teammates, craned his neck as he attempted to locate Narumi amidst the shinobi and civilians seated in the stands. 

Minori, beside him, had his Sharingan active as he searched the crowd. “There! I see your family, Sacchan,” he said. “And Narumi-ji-chan too, and Itachi-senpai!” 

Sakura waved in the general direction of her family. 

Beside him, Sasuke glared down at the arena, studiously avoiding looking at the Uchiha clan, which had gathered in one area of the stands. The Hyuuga were seated as far away from them as possible; Hinata didn’t look at them often, but occasionally snuck nervous peeks in that direction. 

Kakashi was looking somewhere else entirely; Naruto followed his gaze and saw three figures in robes and hats, one red, one green, one bright blue. “Ah, the Kage have arrived. We’ll start soon.” 

“Obito-sensei is late,” Sasuke muttered. 

“U-um, I think he’s there,” Hinata said, hesitantly pointing into the crowd of shinobi. Sasuke activated his Sharingan, and moments later he nodded. 

Obito-sensei ran up behind them only a few minutes later. “Sorry, sorry,” he said. “Hey, at least I made it before the matches started.” 

“Would the participants please make their way to the field,” the proctor said; it was the same guy, but he didn’t sound nearly as lethargic as he had during the preliminaries. 

Naruto gathered in the arena, alongside the other eleven competitors. From down here, he couldn’t distinguish individuals in the crowd, but somehow the crowd looked larger than it had from the stands. 

The Hokage stood, and the arena fell silent. “Welcome!” Sakumo called out. “To the Chuunin Exams! Before you stand the twelve genin who have made it to the final stage of the exams. The main tournament will now begin!” 

The proctor turned to them. “Ah, right, before we begin . . . not many rules, just fighting until forfeit, knock-out, or death. If you leave the arena during your fight, you lose. If you fight after your opponent forfeits, you lose. If it looks like things are going too far, I’ll step in, but . . . try not to kill each other. It freaks out the civilians. No one forfeited or died, so no changes to the matches . . . I think that’s everything. Now, the first match. Minori Hatake vs Shikamaru Nara!” 

The rest of them turned to leave the arena. As they left, however, Sasuke paused next to Minori. “Minori.” 

“Yeah?” Minori said. 

“Shikamaru won’t fight for real . . . if you don’t beat him, I’ll never forgive you,” Sasuke said. 

Minori grinned and gave him a thumbs up. “Don’t worry! Promise I’ll win, Sasuke!” 

Minori skipped over to take his place in the center of the arena, giving a cheery wave to the area of the stands where the Kage sat. 

Sasuke and Naruto rejoined Kakashi and Obito in the stands and watched as Shikamaru trudged to his spot. 

“So, Minori’s basically got this one in the bag, huh,” Naruto said. 

“Perhaps. Shikamaru, now that he’s in the ring, will at least attempt to win, if only to escape being nagged. Both of them are intelligent, so what this really comes down to is information . . . and time.” 

“Time?” Naruto wrinkled up his nose. “I get the information bit, but why time?” 

“The longer the match goes on, the longer they have to think and plan and figure out the other’s abilities. This is a match that could easily go on for hours if one of them doesn’t end it quickly,” Kakashi said. “So it just depends on if one of them will go right for the kill, and if they succeed.” 

“Begin!” the proctor declared. 

Minori threw something down, and the arena filled with smoke. 

When it cleared, only a few seconds later, Minori stood over Shikamaru, naginata pointed at his throat. 

“Sorry, Shikamaru!” Minori said cheerfully. “But I can’t give you any time to think.” 

“What a drag,” Shikamaru sighed. “Fine, I forfeit.” 

“Match!” the proctor declared. “Minori Hatake!” 

Obito gaped at the arena. “That . . . that’s gotta be some kind of record, Bakashi.” 

“No,” Kakashi said. “Itachi Uchiha’s chuunin exam. Instant forfeit.” 

“Oh, come on, there’s no way that counts!” 

“The official record is something like ten milliseconds.” 

“You’re making that up!” 

“Daddy! Papa! Did you see?” Minori ran up to them. 

Obito, beaming, held his out arms as Minori ran right into him. “I did! You were so good!” 

Kakashi ruffled Minori’s hair. “Well done, Micchan. You could have taken more time to show off your abilities.” 

“That’s what the match with Sasuke is for!” Minori flashed Sasuke victory sign. “I won’t lose!” 

“That’s if he wins,” Naruto grumbled. 

“I’ll win.” 

In the arena below, the proctor cleared his throat. “Next match! Sasuke Uchiha vs Karin Uzumaki!” 

The Uzumaki cheered as Karin entered the stadium, a sharp contrast to the silent Uchiha. “Yeah, Sasuke!” Naruto cheered, to make up for the lack of noise for Sasuke, even though he wasn’t really sure which one he would prefer to win. “Yeah, Karin!” 

“Begin!” 

Sasuke ran at Karin immediately, launching shuriken and kunai as he approached. Some of them flew at her, but others went way off. 

“Eh, what’s up with that?” Naruto asked. 

“Watch,” Kakashi said. 

Sasuke blew fire at Karin, who quickly flashed through some signs and spat water at him; right as she did, the kunai and shuriken collided with each other and careened off in new directions, several of them striking her in the side.

Karin leapt away and pulled them out, biting herself to heal the wounds, only for Sasuke to take advantage of her momentary distraction to attack her with a punch. Karin twisted out of the way, only for Sasuke to twist around with her. 

Naruto’s eyes widened; each time Karin spun away from Sasuke, Sasuke moved with her, always ready with a punch or kick, always ready to twist or spin away from Karin’s attempts at retaliating. “Hey, Sasuke’s fighting like an Uzumaki!” 

“Makes sense!” Obito said decisively. “I mean, Mikoto-san was on a team with your—uh, with an Uzumaki. She probably knows all kinds of Uzumaki tricks.” 

Naruto chewed on his lip. “So this is a pretty bad match-up for Karin, huh.” 

“If Sasuke was fire natured, and she knew water jutsu, she would have a chance,” Kakashi said. “However, sensor and medic types are generally at a disadvantage during these exams if they don’t have more offensive talents as well.” 

“But Karin does know water jutsu!” Naruto protested. 

Kakashi smiled. “Ah, but I said that was if Sasuke was fire natured.” 

Karin dodged away from Sasuke and went through a series of hand signs; moments later, a whip of water materialized around her arms, so that a simple swish of her arms made them snap through the air. Sasuke didn’t spit out fire, or try to get closer, just raised a hand that Naruto realized, as it connected with the whip of water, was sparking with lightning.

The electricity traveled through the water, up to Karin’s arm. Karin jerked as the lightning coursed through her body and collapsed to the ground, unmoving. 

“Match, Sasuke Uchiha!” 

The Uchiha went wild—which was to say, they clapped politely—as the medics carted Karin off the arena. Sasuke, moments later, joined them in the stands. 

“Hey, you jerk, since when are you lightning natured?” Naruto demanded. 

“Since I was born,” Sasuke said. 

“Nicely done,” Kakashi said, with an approving nod. “You regulated that well.” 

Naruto thought back to the match brackets. “So, who’s next again?” 

The proctor’s voice resounded through the arena. “Next match! Gaara vs Nawanuke Senju!” 

Naruto winced. Nawanuke seemed like he had some pretty cool abilities, from his preliminary match, but Gaara was just overwhelmingly strong. Still, maybe Nawanuke’s spirit thing could make him forfeit before he had a chance to do anything. 

“Begin!” 

As Nawanuke ran towards Gaara, sand poured from the gourd on Nawanuke’s back, forming a wall between him and Gaara. Nawanuke attempted to kick him, but the sand flung him backwards. 

Nawanuke dashed off, vanishing into the copse of trees at the far end of the arena. 

Naruto squinted at him, trying to discern what he was doing. “Uh, Kakashi-sensei?” 

“Patience is a virtue, Naruto,” Kakashi said. 

Naruto waited, staring at the copse of trees, waiting for something to happen, until eventually Nawanuke walked out. Nawanuke walked into the center of the arena, directly across from Gaara. Gaara’s sand whirled through the air, ready to attack or defend at a moment’s notice.

Nawanuke raised his hands. “I forfeit.” 

The crowds erupted, the Konoha and Uzushio sections booing while the Suna sections cheered. 

“Uh. Match, Gaara,” the proctor said, after a moment. The two of them left the arena; at the same time, Heiwa split from their group in the stands and vanished down the stairs. 

“He barely even tried!” Naruto exclaimed. 

“Mah, Naruto. Against Gaara, what would he have done?” 

Naruto frowned. “I wouldn’t have given up.” 

“If you’re in a fight you know you won’t win, retreat is often the best option,” Kakashi said. 

“Heiwa!” Obito said, breaking up their conversation as Heiwa rejoined them. “How’s Nawanuke?” 

“As well as can be expected,” Heiwa said. 

The proctor cleared his throat and raised his voice, trying to speak over the roar of the crowd. “Next match! Rock Lee vs Temari!” 

“Kakashi-sensei, how do you think this match is going to go?” Naruto asked, as Lee and Temari faced each other. 

“It depends. Temari, from what we’ve seen, is a distance fighter, and Lee is a close-range fighter. If she can keep her distance, she’ll have the advantage, so it depends on whether or not Lee can close that gap.” 

Sure enough, the moment the match started, Temari leapt away and hit Lee with a blast of wind, boosting the wind jutsu with her fan. Lee ran at her, but again she evaded him and blasted him back. The wind made sharp cuts through his jumpsuit, into his skin, but still Lee ran forward, moving faster each time. Still, Temari managed to keep him at bay with a combination of wind jutsu and evasion. 

“Lee!” a voice bellowed. “Take them off!” 

Lee looked into the stands. “Really, Gai-sensei?” 

“Yes!” 

Lee reached down, removing his orange leg warmers and pulling off . . . weights? Naruto squinted and leaned in, trying to see better. Lee did the same with his arms, so that he was holding two weights in each hand. 

He dropped them, and a noise like a small explosion resounded through the arena. Dust billowed through the air; when it cleared, Naruto could see two craters where the leg warmers had landed. 

“Holy shit!”

This time, when Lee moved, Naruto could barely see him; Temari attempted to strike at him with her fan, but he punched right through it. Lee was moving too fast to see, a whirlwind of kicks and punches. Both Minori and Sasuke had their Sharingan activated as they watched the fight, completely absorbed in Lee’s taijutsu. Occasionally, Temari would manage to evade or retaliate, but she was very clearly faltering. 

She made one final, desperate attack with her fan; Lee kicked, bending the fan in half and sending it soaring across the field. Temari flew in the opposite direction, collided with the wall hard enough to make a crater, and was still. 

“Match, Rock Lee!” 

The crowd erupted into cheers; Lee’s taijutsu prowess had obviously thrilled them. Lee, tears streaming down his face, waved at the crowd and his sensei. Even from where he was sitting, Naruto could hear Lee’s sensei sobbing loudly. Lee ran up to join him in the stands, and the two of them embraced, still sobbing. 

Naruto grimaced and looked away, instead focusing on the proctor, who was about to call out the next pair of names. 

“Next match! Sakura Haruno vs Naruto Uzumaki!” 

The Uzumaki in the stands cheered loudly. 

Naruto grinned at her and held out a fist. “I won’t go easy on you, ya know!” 

Sakura bumped her fist against his. “I wouldn’t want you to.” 

They went down to the arena together and faced off. 

“Begin!” 

They started simple, each of them drawing a seal in the dirt. In the stands, the Uzumaki whooped and hollered. Naruto’s was a scrawled, slapdash collection of elements that somehow did what he wanted it to; Sakura’s was neat and tidy and had no doubt been carefully calculated. They still finished at about the same time, and activated their seals together.

A cloud of orange smoke exploded from his seal; Naruto used the cover to summon a horde of water and shadow clones and disguise himself as a kunai, held by one of the clones. The clones leapt out of the smoke, towards Sakura, who retaliated with a series of explosive tags. Some of the clones dispelled, but the majority of the horde kept going. 

Sakura ducked beneath a clone and pressed a hand to the ground; Naruto knew immediately she was trying to set up a barrier. “I won’t let you do that!” the clones roared. 

One of the clones rushed forward to destroy the barrier seal. Sakura pressed her hands to the ground, and the seal vanished beneath the earth, out of his reach for the moment. She ran away again to set up the next seal for the barrier; most of his clones went after her, but a few stayed behind to try to get to the barrier seal. 

The clone Naruto was with went after her, joining the others in flinging a volley of kunai at her. A thin wall of dirt rose from the ground, just high enough and thick enough to block the kunai; clearly, she’d been getting Kakashi to teach her more jutsu. 

Two clones went around one side of the wall, and two around the other. Sakura dispelled one of them, and it burst into water, destroying the paper seal she had placed on the ground. Sakura dispelled the three other clones and darted away to find a new, less wet place to set up her barrier seal. 

“How about this, then?” the clone carrying Naruto called, and began to draw a whirlpool seal in the middle of the arena. 

Sakura ran forwards, kunai drawn, to stop him. The clone flung kunai at her, including Naruto, which Sakura easily dodged. The clone engaged her in taijutsu, while behind her back, Naruto transformed back into himself, ran forwards, and pressed a knock-out seal against her back. 

“Sorry, Sakura, but I’m gonna win this thing,” he said. 

Sakura collapsed to the ground. The proctor raised his hand. “Match, Naruto Uzumaki!” 

The Uzumaki cheered loudly enough to shake the stadium. Naruto waved at the crowd as he searched for his family. There, in the stands, stood Narumi, with Naruto’s parents right next to him, his dad smiling fondly and his mom cheering along with the rest of the Uzumaki. 

A funny feeling settled over him as he looked at them. 

He realized, suddenly, that he didn’t recall Sakura’s initial seal actually doing anything. 

He brought his hands together and fluctuated his chakra. “Kai!” 

The scene wavered; the crowd wasn’t cheering, just watching expectantly. Naruto stood in middle of the arena, but Sakura wasn’t anywhere near him, instead standing by her original seal. He grinned at her. “Sorry, Sakura . . . but that kind of genjutsu won’t work on me.” 

Sakura grinned and brought her hands together in a seal. “Then I guess I’ll have to find one that will.” 

“Go ahead and try!” 

Sakura’s hands flashed through seals. 

Naruto ran forward, a knock-out seal in hand. 

His seal connected with her stomach moments before she finished her jutsu; she sank to the ground, unconscious.

“Match, Naruto Uzumaki!” the proctor declared. The crowd cheered. Naruto looked up into the stands, and found Narumi waving at him. On one side of him was an unfamiliar Uzumaki, and on the other was a Konoha jounin. 

Naruto forced a grin to his face and waved back. 

He broke the seal on Sakura, and together the two of them returned to the stands. “What was that genjutsu?” he asked. 

“Oh, it shows you what you most want at the moment. I thought that it would show you winning, and then you would walk out of the arena, and I would win by default,” Sakura said. “What did you see?” 

“Basically that,” Naruto said. “Except when I looked in the stands, my parents were there.” 

Sakura winced. “Sorry, Naruto.” 

“Nah, it’s okay.” He grinned at her. “It was kind of cool to see them there, even if it was just a genjutsu.” 

Sakura smiled tentatively. “Good match, Naruto.” 

He slung an arm around her shoulder. “Good match.” 

They still had their arms around each other when they reached their team; Kakashi nodded approvingly. “No hard feelings, I see.” 

“Naruto won, fair and square,” Sakura said. 

“It was super close! That genjutsu almost got me,” Naruto said. 

“Next time, it will,” Sakura declared. 

“Next match!” the proctor called. “Heiwa Senju vs Neji Hyuuga!” 

“U-um, good luck, Heiwa,” Hinata said hesitantly. 

Sasuke glared at Neji. “. . . Good luck.” 

“Kick his ass, Heiwa!” Naruto said, followed by an enthusiastic cheer from Minori. 

Heiwa gave them a determined nod before making her way down into the arena. She and Neji faced off, both of them glaring at each other. 

“Begin!” 

Heiwa started by creating distance between them, and quickly flashed through a series of hand signs. She slammed her hands to the ground, and the ground around Neji spiralled inwards towards him. 

Kakashi whistled, impressed. “Tearing Earth, Turning Palm. Someone’s been busy.” 

Obito laughed. “You’ll never believe who she’s been studying with, Bakashi.” 

Naruto leaned in closer to hear better as Neji spoke. “You will never defeat me with such a weak technique,” he said. 

Naruto looked over at them. “Is it weak?” 

“It’s a C-rank jutsu, but it’s capable of causing immense damage. It would be more effective inside a cave, of course, but the potential of being crushed is hardly something to scoff at,” Kakashi said. 

As the rock surrounded Neji, he shifted his stance, and then he attacked. “Two palms! Four palms! Eight palms! Sixteen palms!” 

Obito’s mouth fell open. “No fucking way.” 

“Thirty-two palms! Sixty-four palms!” 

The earth that had moments ago threatened to crush him lay crumbled around him, a radius of clear ground created by his technique. The Hyuuga were in an uproar, half of them on their feet. 

Obito pointed at Neji. “Kakashi, he just—!” 

“I saw him,” Kakashi said, grimly. 

Naruto looked between them. “What? What did he do?” 

“N-Neji-nii-san,” Hinata said, her tone clearly surprised. “He learned . . .” 

“Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four Palms,” Neji said. His voice rang through the arena for all to hear. “The prized technique reserved solely for the main house. I learned it simply by watching and replicating it by myself. You have no hope of defeating me. It is your fate to lose here.” 

Heiwa made another series of hand signs, this time spewing water from her mouth. Neji used a different technique, this time creating some kind of shield that deflected the water until Heiwa could no longer support it. She pulled out more techniques, shooting bullets of mud and then bullets of water, only for those to be deflected as well, no matter where she shot them from or how she combined them. 

“Give up,” Neji said. “Soon, you will be too tired to continue. You are weak . . . just like  _ Hinata-sama _ .” He spat her name like it was a curse. 

Heiwa let out a yell and ran forwards, an earthen fist solidifying as she ran towards Neji. 

Neji smirked, and began his technique once again. “Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four Palms!” 

Heiwa flew across the arena, hit the ground, and didn’t move. “Shit!” Obito swore, and leapt over the barrier between them and the arena. 

“Match!” the proctor called, as Obito picked up Heiwa and ran in the direction of the infirmary before the medic-nin could even open the doors. “Hyuuga Neji!” 

No one cheered as Neji left the arena; even his teammates didn’t seem to be sure what to say. 

“Using that on a comrade,” Kakashi said, and shook his head. “What has Gai been teaching him?” 

“Is Hei-tan gonna be okay?” Minori asked anxiously. 

“Hopefully, he only closed her tenketsu,” Kakashi said. “Replicating a technique by watching it is no way to properly learn it. I suppose we’ll see how much of a genius he really is.” 

“I’m gonna go see Hei-tan,” Minori said, before darting down the stairs. 

The proctor walked to the center of the arena. Naruto looked at the sky; the sun was already tinted orange from the setting sun. At this rate, the rest of the matches were going to be entirely in the dark. 

“The semifinals and finals will take place tomorrow, starting at ten in the morning!” the proctor announced. “Please return to see Minori Hatake vs Sasuke Uchiha, Rock Lee vs Gaara, and Naruto Uzumaki vs Neji Hyuuga! Thank you for watching the chuunin exam quarterfinals!” 

The spectators began to stream from the stands. Kakashi herded the five of them towards the infirmary, which, at this point, was empty of everyone except for Heiwa, Minori, Obito, and a few medics. 

The man smiled at them as they entered. “Your teammate will be fine,” he said. “We opened all her tenketsu and healed all her injuries. As soon as she wakes up, she’s free to go. I’d keep her for observation, but well, her mother is Tsunade-sama. She’ll be better off at home.” 

Minori was sitting on one side of Heiwa. Hinata went to her other side and took Heiwa’s hand in hers. “Heiwa . . . I’m sorry about Neji-nii-san,” she whispered. 

“Don’t,” Sasuke said sharply. “His actions aren’t your fault.” 

Naruto scowled at the ground. “He’s an ass.” 

“You had better beat him,” Sasuke said. 

“Believe me, he’s going down.” Naruto grinned. “I’ve got all night to make a plan.” 

Sasuke nodded. “Hinata. We’re going to sensei’s house.” 

“W-what?” Hinata squeaked. 

“Naruto, you too,” Sasuke said. “Sakura, if she wants.” 

Sakura nodded. “I want to help, too.” 

“We are going to make a plan of action,” Sasuke decreed. 

“What about me?” Minori protested. 

“It’s at your house, idiot. Of course you’ll be there,” Sasuke said. 

Kakashi sighed happily and placed a hand on Sasuke and Naruto’s heads. “It’s so nice to see all my cute little students getting along. But . . . before you invite yourself over, you should really ask.” 

“You’re our sensei,” Sasuke said. “It’s not like you have anything else to do.” 

“Oh, to be young,” Obito sighed. “There are a ton of things I could be doing . . . none of which I should really tell you. But since I’m such a cool sensei, I’ll offer up my house for your planning session.” 

The door opened and Narumi poked his head in. “A planning session, huh?” he said. “Sounds like you kids will need some snacks.” 

“Yeah! Buy us ramen, Ji-chan, ramen!” 

“No ramen!” Sasuke declared. “We need brain food.” 

“Gross! I’m not eating brains!” 

“No, you idiot! Brain-food, like fish or something.” 

The medic cleared his throat. “If you would leave . . . Senju-san does need to rest.” 

They were quickly evicted from the room, and made their way to Obito and Kakashi’s house for their planning session. As the adults prepared snacks—Narumi did end up going to get ramen from Ichiraku—the genin gathered around a table.

Sasuke spread out a scroll. “Hinata. What are the limits of the Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four palms? What, exactly, does it involve? The other thing he used, too.” 

“Um, well, I’m not very good at it. . . but you envision an eight trigrams circle, and then hit the opponent inside the circle sixty-four times to close sixty-four of their tenketsu,” Hinata said. “The other one was Eight Trigrams, Palms Revolving Heaven. You expel chakra from all your tenketsu, then spin rapidly, and that creates the shield . . . I’m not very good at that one either.” 

“What is the range of these?” 

“For Neji-nii-san . . . I don’t know, it varies,” Hinata admitted. 

“From what I saw, it looks like the shield was just a little larger than the span of his arms,” Sakura said. 

“Are there any weaknesses, or ways to prevent the attacks?” 

“Um . . . well, if you can’t spin, you can’t do Revolving Heaven,” Hinata said. “But I don’t know how you would stop him from spinning. The other . . . I don’t know about a weakness.” 

They considered this. “So, if you can see them with your Byakugan, you can hit them?” Sakura asked. 

Hinata nodded.

“We just have to be outside of the range, then!” Minori declared. 

“Well, um, there is a blind spot, but it’s very small,” Hinata said, and pointed to the back of her head. “About one to three degrees, right here.” 

“A senbon could get through,” Sakura said. “But you don’t use those, and I don’t think you could learn in a night.” 

“And Revolving Heaven compensates for that,” Hinata said. 

“So, we have to stop him from spinning to take advantage of the blind spot . . .” Naruto muttered. “Or find another way around it. Can the Byakugan see through anything?” 

“Almost,” Hinata said. “Except um . . . certain barriers, and the ground. ” 

“The ground, huh?” Naruto said. “That's it . . . the ground!” He looked around the group, grinning madly. 

He had the beginnings of a plan. 


	40. Chapter 40

The stands were even more full the next day; there was plenty of space in the competitor stands, but Naruto was sure everyone else was cramped and squished. 

“Thank you for coming to the final round of the chuunin exams!” the proctor said. “Now, the first match of the semifinals! Minori Hatake vs Sasuke Uchiha!” 

The Uchiha clapped as the rest of the stands whooped and hollered; Minori, as the grandson of the Hokage, was a favorite to win. 

The two of them walked into the arena. Minori waved cheerfully at the Kage box, while Sasuke simply looked at the Uchiha section. 

“Begin!” 

Sasuke and Minori ran at each other and began exchanging blows, perfectly mirroring each other. 

“They’re showing off the Sharingan,” Obito explained. “It’s good they have the first fight. This wouldn't look nearly as impressive after Lee.” 

Naruto caught sight of their usual styles, with some Uzushio style and even some of the Hyuuga’s Gentle Fist thrown in. After some time, they leapt apart, and this time flashed through a series of hand signs. They simultaneously blew massive balls of flame in the air, so hot Naruto could feel it even up in the stands. 

Once the fire had cleared, each of them did their own thing. Minori unsealed his naginata, and Sasuke pulled out a handful of shuriken. Sasuke flung out the shuriken, which curved at weird angles and deflected off each other. Minori spun his naginata as he ran at Sasuke, knocking several of them side, and dodged the remaining shuriken. Minori spun and slashed his naginata as Sasuke threw his kunai and shuriken, their patterns growing more and more complicated each time. It wasn’t so much a competition, Naruto thought, as a really elaborate dance. 

Sasuke threw another volley of shuriken and kunai, and then leapt back, out of Minori’s extended reach. Minori darted forward, swinging his naginata around as Sasuke made a series of hand signs. 

Sasuke blew out fire, but this time it was a precise and thin stream of white and blue flame, rather than the orange explosion of before. Minori kept running forward, right into the stream of flame, and then—vanished. 

He appeared behind Sasuke an instant later, lashing out with his naginata. Sasuke dodged, but clasped a hand to his arm for an instant. 

“Shunshin?” Obito exclaimed. “I didn’t teach him that. Did you teach him that?” 

Kakashi tilted his head towards the Hokage box. “I think you’ll find our culprit up there.” 

Naruto squinted; Shisui was standing behind Sakumo, punching the air in excitement. 

“Shisui?  _ That’s  _ Minori’s secret teacher?” Obito said. “Come on, I’m way cooler than Shisui!”

“Hm.” 

“Hm? Hm? That’s all you have to say? Fine, I’ll leave and you can marry Shisui instead!” 

“I’d rather not. They say he’s the fastest man alive,” Kakashi said. 

Obito descended into hysterical giggling. 

Naruto looked at the girls. “Any idea what they’re talking about?” 

The three girls all shook their heads. Naruto shrugged and turned back to the fight, which was still going strong, the two boys still engaging each other with their weapons, taijutsu, and the occasional bit of ninjutsu. 

Then, all of a sudden, Sasuke stumbled and fell. 

He said something that Naruto couldn’t hear above the din of the crowd. “Don’t worry, don’t worry,” Minori said as he sealed his naginata. “It’s just a little paralytic! It takes a little bit of time to start working, but then it doesn’t wear off for a long, long, long time without the antidote.” 

“Ah, the naginata,” Kakashi said. 

Obito nodded. “Figures. I bet Orochimaru gave it to him.” 

“Or he got it himself. If Shishou gave it to him, it would have been deadly.” 

The proctor raised a hand. “Match! Minori Hatake!” 

The crowd went wild; Naruto had a feeling a lot of them would be benefitting from bets made with the Uchiha. Even the Hokage, who was supposed to be a neutral party, looked rather smug. 

Medics came and carted Sasuke away, and Minori turned to head back up to the stands. 

Naruto leaned over and waved to him. “Yeah, Minori! You kicked his ass!” 

Sakura, beside him, waved just as vigorously. “Good job, Minori! You were amazing!” 

Minori grinned and held up a victory sign, only to suddenly frown and look at the ground. 

A strange person burst out of the ground—or maybe creature was a better word to describe it; it was half white, and half black, and had two leaves like a venus flytrap around its head. Just looking at it made Naruto shiver. 

A shriek pierced the air as the creature grabbed MInori. Kakashi and Obito flung themselves over the barrier just as the creature vanished beneath the ground. A group of ANBU immediately joined them, several of them vanishing beneath the ground as well while another spoke to Kakashi and Obito. 

“Wha—what was that?” Naruto said. 

“It’ll be okay,” Sakura said anxiously. “They’ll find him. The ANBU are some of the strongest ninja in the village.” 

Narumi had joined Kakashi and Obito down in the arena; they were arguing furiously with the ANBU, but Naruto couldn’t hear anything over the panicking crowd. 

Eventually, Kakashi, Obito, Narumi, and the ANBU all left the arena. The Hokage stood and raised his hands, and the crowd slowly settled. 

“Please, be calm,” he said. “Everything is being taken care of. Now, Hayate, if you will.” 

The proctor cleared his throat. “Ah. Next match. Rock Lee vs Gaara.” 

Naruto gaped as the two boys headed down to the arena. “He’s continuing the exams? Minori just got kidnapped by some weird plant dude! We have to go look for him!” 

“He is the Hokage,” Heiwa said. “Cancelling the exams would make the village appear weak. In addition, it would reveal the extent of his love for Minori, which other villages would target as a weakness.” 

“Who cares about stupid stuff like that?” Naruto exclaimed. “He’s been kidnapped, and we’re just going to pretend it didn’t happen?” 

“The ANBU are looking for him. Take a look around. How many ANBU do you see?” Heiwa said. 

Naruto scanned the crowd. A lot of the jounin were moving around, calming down civilians, but he didn’t see a single cloak or mask among them. “None.” 

“They’re all looking for him. He’s the Hokage’s grandson; kidnapping attempts are to be expected,” Heiwa said.

Naruto slammed his hands down on the barrier. “Aren’t you worried about him at all?” 

“Of course!” Heiwa snapped. She glared at him, briefly, before jerking away from the group and going down the stairs. Hinata hesitated for a moment before following her. 

The fight below was in full swing, but Naruto could barely pay attention to it. Lee was moving fast enough that Naruto could barely see him, but Gaara’s sand seemed to be doing a pretty good job of keeping up his defenses. 

Heiwa and Hinata returned a few minutes into the fight, just as Lee broke through Gaara’s defenses, smashing him backwards. 

Broken sand fell from Gaara’s face; Naruto knew he should have been analyzing this fight, since he would have to fight one of them after beating Neji, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

“Dammit. This is stupid; I’m going to see if I can do anything to find him. Ji-chan will know what’s going on.” 

“Don’t bother the jounin and ANBU right now; they’re too busy to entertain a genin,” Heiwa said. “Besides, your match is next.” 

“Who gives a crap about becoming chuunin when Minori is missing?” 

Heiwa glared at him. “The adults will find him. What happened to your promise? You’re the only one left.” 

Naruto looked over at Neji. He was concentrating on the fight, like he didn’t even care about what had just happened. He probably didn’t care. Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. “Fine, I’ll keep my promise . . . I’m a shinobi of my word. But as soon as that’s done, I’m going to find someone who knows what’s going on.” 

“I still think you should stay out of their way,” Heiwa said. “They know how to run a search and rescue mission much better than you do.” 

They all spun around as they felt a rush of wind; Itachi stood behind them, still looking as composed as ever. “Senpai asked me to keep you company,” he said. 

“You aren’t joining in the search?” Sakura asked. 

“No. There are others whose talents are better suited,” Itachi said. “Ah. This may be interesting.” 

Naruto looked back at the fight. Lee had unwound the wrapping around his arms, and now ran at Gaara. Lee kicked him into the air, over and over again, bringing him higher and higher each time. The bandages wrapped around Gaara, tying him to Lee.

“Initial Lotus!” 

Lee spun and hurled Gaara to the ground, leaping away at the last moment. Gaara lay in a crater, unmoving. 

“Did he . . . win?” Sakura asked. 

“No,” Itachi said. 

Gaara’s face crumbled away, revealing an empty shell of sand. He reappeared out of the sand behind Lee; as Lee turned to face him, the sand rushed forward and slammed him against the wall. Lee stood there, hands held protectively in front of him, as Gaara sent wave after wave of sand at him. 

“Why doesn’t he do something?” Naruto demanded. 

“The Initial Lotus is incredibly taxing. He is likely in intense pain,” Itachi said. 

Hinata clasped her hands together and watched the match anxiously. “Lee-san . . .” 

“Is he going to just give up?” Naruto said. 

“No.” 

As the next wave of sand approached, Lee leapt out of the way, suddenly much more invigorated than he had been moments before. 

“He is opening the Eight Gates,” Itachi explained, without being asked. “They are rarely discussed outside of taijutsu and medicine, so I would not be surprised if none of you had heard of them, except for Sakura-san and Hyuuga-san.” Both Sakura and Hinata nodded. “The gates limit the amount of chakra that flows through the body. Lee-san is releasing these gates. It is an incredibly dangerous process, however, with a high risk of death as you open more gates.” 

This time, when Lee moved, Naruto could barely see him; even the sand couldn’t keep up as Lee kicked Gaara around the arena, diminishing his sand armor with each hit. 

“Go, Lee!” Naruto yelled. 

Lee’s fist punched directly into Gaara’s stomach, sending Gaara crashing to the ground once again, this time unprotected by either his sand shield or his sand armor. Right as Gaara was about to hit the ground, however, the gourd on Gaara’s back burst into sand. 

The sand exploded into the air; when it cleared, Gaara lay on the ground, knocked down but not knocked out. 

He curled his fingers into a fist, and sand wrapped around Lee’s arms and legs, then crept up to cover his whole body from the neck down. 

“I can crush him in an instant,” he said. 

The proctor quickly raised his hand. “Match! Rock Lee!” 

The sand melted away, and Lee collapsed to the ground. Gaara stood and turned to go. 

“Wait,” Lee gasped. 

Gaara turned, and Lee gave him a thumbs up. “Let’s have a . . . rematch sometime.” 

His hand dropped as he fell unconscious. Medics rushed in with a stretcher to carry him away while Gaara left the arena. 

“Next match!” the proctor announced. “Naruto Uzumaki vs Neji Hyuuga!” 

“G-good luck, Naruto,” Hinata said. 

Heiwa nodded. “Good luck. Take him down.” 

“Just like we planned,” Sakura said. 

Naruto gave them a thumbs up and walked down to the arena. 

He stood across from Neji. “You should give up,” Neji said. “You are fated to fail.” 

“I don’t know much about fate, but I’m not giving up without a fight,” Naruto said. “I made a promise.” 

“Begin!” 

Naruto leapt back and summoned his clones. Each of them took a seal and ran off, pressing them against the ground at various spots in the arena. The first step: stopping Neji’s rotation. 

Naruto activated the seal, and thick, sticky grease flowed from the seals. “Fuinjutsu: Grease Trap!” he announced proudly. 

When the flow of grease stopped, it went well above his ankles. It was hard for him to move as well, but as least Neji would find it harder to spin. As Neji attempted to extricate himself, Naruto and the clones hurled kunai and shuriken at him. 

Neji managed to get himself out of the grease and instead stood on top of it using the Water Walking Technique. His spinning was noticeably slower, but he was still able to knock away the kunai. 

“Your efforts are useless,” he said. “You should give up. You have no reason to fight me.” 

“I do!” Naruto declared. “Insulting Hinata, hurting her . . . attacking your comrades is something I can never forgive, no matter what your family did! Hinata had nothing to do with that!” 

Neji stood in the middle of the arena and looked at him. Naruto shifted his weight. “Very well,” Neji said, at last. “Then I will tell you—I will tell this village—about the Hyuuga’s destiny of hatred.” 

Neji’s hands went to his headband. “There is a technique passed down through the main house. The Caged Bird Seal. It is this seal that ties each member of the branch house to an inescapable destiny.” 

Neji removed his headband to reveal a small seal on his forehead. 

“Fuinjutsu,” Naruto gasped—except it wasn’t any fuinjutsu he had ever seen. 

“This seal was carved onto my forehead when I was four years old,” Neji said. “On the same day as Hinata-sama’s third birthday. My father and her father are twins, but my father, as the younger, became a member of the branch house, and so I received this seal.” 

“What does it do?” Naruto asked. 

“You are experienced with fuinjutsu, so you are aware this is no mere decoration. With a simple hand sign, any main house member can use the seal to cause incredible pain, destroy the branch member’s mind, or kill them.”

Around them, the Hyuuga were in an uproar again; the Uzumaki, too, were screaming about misuses of fuinjutsu and immoral fuinjutsu practices. Naruto could only stare at Neji. “That’s . . . horrible.” 

“It is used to seal the Byakugan after death,” Neji said. “And so it is deemed necessary to protect the bloodline. We of the branch house live solely to protect the main house, even though our deaths.” 

Neji looked up at the Hyuuga stands. “My uncle attempted to kill my father.” 

“Wha—”

“Hinata-sama was kidnapped,” Neji said. “Hiashi-sama killed the kidnapper, only to discover he was an ambassador from Kumo who had come to sign a treaty. Kumo accused Konoha of breaking the treaty, and demanded the corpse of Hiashi-sama as recompense. My father was to be killed as his replacement, and would have been, but for Hokage-sama’s intervention. He refused, and instead sent a message to Kumo. With the Sannin themselves bearing the message, Kumo did not dare retaliate. But I have never forgotten the intentions of the main house.

“They were twins, the same strength, simply born in a different order. Fate was decided like that—at some point, the Hokage will not intervene. And my father will die for the main house. His destiny has already been decided, just as yours was decided when you became my opponent.” 

With that, Neji surged forward. Naruto cursed himself for getting distracted and stumbled backwards, too late. 

“Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four palms!” 

Naruto’s world narrowed to the pain that spiked through him with each hit. Blood filled his mouth, but he wasn’t sure if it was from biting his tongue or something more serious; unlike Hinata, Neji had no reason to go easy on him. The force of the last attack sent him flying across the arena. 

For a moment, he lay there as Neji’s damn ranting about destiny washed over him. He rolled over, gritting his teeth as pain washed through him, and managed to get his feet under him. He lifted one knee enough that his foot was planted on the floor and boosted himself up. He nearly fell over the moment he stood, the pain was so intense, but he locked his knees and forced himself to stay upright. 

“I won’t break my promise!” he declared, pointing at Neji. “There’s no way I’ll lose to someone who blames all his problems on destiny! You think you’re the only one suffering? Look at Hinata! She fought so hard against you, trying to be acknowledged, trying to get stronger! Trying to change her destiny, or whatever you call it. And aren’t you the same, trying to prove the branch house isn’t weak? Isn’t that going against destiny?” 

“In the end, it is futile,” Neji said. “My fate will be to die for the main house. Just as your fate is to lose here. You have no chakra; you cannot fight.” 

Naruto grinned. “That’s what you think, bastard!” 

He hadn’t just spent that month with Jiraiya, learning how to summon frogs—he’d spent it training with Rin. 

_ C’mon, stupid fox, do you really wanna lose to an asshole like this guy? Give me some chakra!  _

Slowly, chakra rushed through him as his tenketsu opened. The pain disappeared as his wounds were healed by the chakra. Naruto straightened to his full height and thrust a fist in the air. The Uzumaki screamed louder than anyone in the arena; he could hear his teammates yelling in the background. 

“Impossible,” Neji gasped. “You—how?”

Naruto reached into his pocket, pulled out another seal, and grinned at Neji. “I told you. I don’t give up!” 

With that, he closed his eyes and threw it down. The flash-bang was so bright it hurt his eyes even though his eyelids; no doubt Neji was really feeling the effects. Naruto took advantage of the momentary blinding light to summon a clone and vanished beneath the ground—the Headhunter Jutsu, taught to him by Sakura, had kept him up half the night as he practiced it over and over again. 

Above him, he knew his clone would be charging at Neji to keep him distracted. Naruto didn’t care about that; he burrowed right to where Neji was and burst through the ground, fist extended. His punch connected with Neji’s jaw, sending him sailing backwards. Neji hit the ground and didn’t get up. 

“Winner, Naruto Uzumaki!” the proctor declared. 

The Uzumaki were downright deafening now. Beaming, Naruto looked for Narumi in the crowd, only to remember—he wasn’t there, he was looking for Minori. 

“You might as well stay down here for the finals,” the proctor said, as the medics carried Neji away. He raised his voice and addressed the rest of the arena. “And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for! The final round of the chuunin exams! Naruto Uzumaki of Konoha, the top shinobi of his class, versus Gaara of Suna, the Kazekage’s son!” 

Naruto looked over at the competitor’s stands. Gaara stood in front of his teacher. He looked surprisingly nice, considering he taught people like Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari. He had blond hair and blue eyes, and from what Naruto could see, a gentle smile. He put his hands on Gaara’s shoulders for a brief moment before Gaara headed down to the arena. 

Weirdly, that made Naruto feel a little better about the fight. Even super strong guys like Gaara had people who cared about them. 

Gaara’s eyes were cold when he faced Naruto, but Naruto grinned at him. He knew the truth now—Gaara was probably a big softy inside. “Let’s do our best!” 

“What,” said Gaara.

“For our precious people, ya know,” Naruto said. 

“Precious . . . people,” said Gaara, in a tone of voice that definitely implied he thought Naruto was nuts. 

Naruto nodded. “Yeah! Like, my uncle, and your teacher!” 

“My teacher is . . . my uncle,” Gaara said. 

“Eh?” Naruto looked at the teacher again. “Oh! Yeah, I guess he looks kind of like that Temari girl, and she’s your sister, right? That’s pretty cool, being on a team with your whole family.” 

“Kankuro . . . Temari . . . they are not my family.” 

“Eh?” 

The proctor cleared his throat. “If you’re done, you’re keeping the audience waiting,” he said. Naruto nodded, and readied himself. Gaara simply stood there, but Naruto knew that sand could attack at a moment’s notice. 

“Begin!” 

The sand lashed out immediately. Naruto leapt away, summoning water and shadow clones to serve as a distraction. He ran on top of the grease still filling the arena until he reached the edge, and then ran up the wall. He tied a seal to a kunai and hurled it down, into the center of the arena. 

Water burst from the seal in a whirlpool. The proctor leapt up to the wall instantly, avoiding the wave that crashed down on the spot he had been moments later. Gaara’s sand shield automatically surrounded him as the water crashed around him, as Naruto had expected it would. The sand was hard enough that the water didn’t do much to it, except maybe make the surface a little damp; Sakura had theorized that might be the case, since Earth was strong against Water. 

The water would, however, keep Gaara from attacking him while he readied the next stage of his plan. 

Naruto readied another kunai and threw this one directly into the rushing water beneath him, activating it as he threw it. Lightning spread from the seal, through the kunai, through the water, right to Gaara. 

The lightning branched through the sand dome, leaving tubes of glass in its wake. Water poured in through the cracking dome of sand. Gaara screamed, and then was silent. 

Slowly, the sand dome crumbled. Naruto hesitantly walked over to the dome and peered down at it, trying to figure out if Gaara was hiding or drowning. Considering that Gaara lived in a desert, he might not know how to swim. 

The lightning dissipated and the rush of water stopped. Still, nothing moved beneath the water. 

The proctor raised his hand. 

Sand exploded out of the water, accompanied by a wave of malevolent chakra. 

Naruto stumbled back, nearly losing his footing on the wall, as Gaara stood, wrapped in a cloak of chakra. The chakra was violent enough to make him feel sick. Still, it felt . . . familiar, almost like when he and Rin had been training with the Kyuubi and the Sanbi. 

“You’re like me,” Naruto realized. “You’re a jinchuuriki.” 

“So . . . I was right,” Gaara said. “You and I both contain monsters. The Kyuubi . . . or the Sanbi?” 

Naruto glanced at the Hokage’s box, unsure if he was allowed to say. 

“It doesn’t matter,” Gaara said. “I will defeat you. That is my purpose as a weapon of Sunagakure.” 

“Don’t think I’ll let you win so easily. I’ve got a purpose of my own, ya know—to become a ninja my parents would be proud of!” 

_ Hey, stupid fox! You wanna kick the ass of another jinchuuriki? Or are you so weak you can’t beat a demon with fewer tails than you? _

Red chakra swirled around him, coalescing into a dense shroud of chakra with a few bubbles. He glanced behind him to see two tails waving through the air, the maximum he’d been able to reach in his month of training. 

Naruto roared, and a shockwave of chakra blasted Gaara back. He recovered quickly, however, and gathered up his sand, keeping it hovering in the air above the water. Naruto ran forwards, punched through the sand, and was thrown back. 

Midair, he bit into his thumb, and twisted around so that when he landed, his hand slammed against the ground as the water was displaced with the force of his landing. 

“Kuchiyose!” 

A toad with large lips, eyelashes, and blush appeared in a puff of smoke. “Gamariki!” Naruto exclaimed, even as he dashed away from another wave of sand. 

“Naruto-chan,” the toad said. “Have you summoned me just so you can practice dispelling genjutsu again?” 

“Not this time! I’m fighting a really strong guy, ya know, and I was thinking maybe genjutsu would work on him. I’m gonna keep him distracted, so you just have to sneak up on him and get him!” 

Gamariki sniffed delicately. “Just this once.” 

Naruto grinned. “Great! You’re the best, Gamariki.” 

With that, he whirled around and ran at Gaara. “I don’t get it!” he called. “Why’d you say your brother and sister aren’t your family?” 

Gaara scowled. “They do not acknowledge me . . . they fear me. My father acknowledges me only as a weapon. The only people to acknowledge me are Yashamaru . . . and my mother.” 

The sand smacked him in the middle, sending him flying back. Naruto landed in the water with a splash, but quickly got up before the sand could cover him. “Why’re they afraid?” 

“Because of the monster,” Gaara said. “Do your ‘friends’ not fear you?” 

“Of course not!” 

“And . . . do they know what you really are?” 

Naruto hesitated. Kakashi knew so he assumed that Obito knew, and Narumi, Sakumo, Jiraiya, and Rin all knew. He’d told Sakura and Minori himself, but other than that none of his friends his own age actually knew about the Kyuubi. 

“They do not,” Gaara said. “Once they know, then they will fear you, as my siblings do, as the villagers do. My father fears me . . . fears what would happen should the seal break, although he values me as a weapon. To them I am nothing more than a tool to be used for the sake of the village. Even Yashamaru is under orders to make me into a stronger weapon. And my mother . . . died to give me life.” 

Naruto ducked under a wave of sand, splashing it with water to weigh it down. “Sounds like we’ve got more in common than I thought. My mom died too, when I was born! And my dad sealed this thing inside me.” 

“And you hate him for it,” Gaara said. 

“No—because he did it for the sake of the people he loved!” Naruto lashed out with a kick, managing a single to the shield before being thrown back again. “I’m not a tool, or a weapon. I’m a shinobi of Konoha, and I’m gonna make them proud by being strong enough to protect everyone! Don’t you want Yashamaru to pat your head and tell you, ‘good job, you did well,’ and buy you your favorite food for dinner? And your siblings, don’t you want to play stupid games with them and tease them?” 

“They would not want to,” Gaara said. 

“Yeah, ‘cause they’re scared of you, but don’t they just not know you?” Naruto said. “You keep saying you’re a tool, you’re a weapon . . . aren’t you just a kid like anyone else? I think that you’re probably a pretty nice guy. You just have to show them that you aren’t the demon. It’s like how people get mad at the police, when the police are just doing their jobs and protecting the village, ya know!” 

“I don’t know.” 

“Oh, well. I mean, I guess what I’m saying is . . . we should be friends!” 

The sand stopped. Gaara stared at him. “Friends.” 

“I mean, after the exam,” Naruto said. 

“I . . .” 

Gaara’s face went blank. 

“Mission success!” Gamariki said. 

“Great!” Naruto approached hesitantly. Still, the sand didn’t move. Naruto grabbed Gaara’s shoulders and steered him towards the exit. The moment Gaara’s feet crossed out of the arena, the proctor declared, “Gaara loses by default! Match, Naruto Uzumaki!” 

The Uzumaki went absolutely wild; somehow, Naruto found himself being tossed up on the shoulders of a crowd of red-heads, even as the proctor yelled at them to get off the field. Laughing, Naruto waved at his team with both hands. 

Only Sakura, Heiwa, and Hinata waved back. 

“Would everybody please leave the arena,” the proctor said. “The closing ceremony will be in an hour and we need to clean all this up.” 

The Uzumaki reluctantly returned to the stands as Naruto joined his team in the stands. Beneath them, chuunin drained the arena of water and flattened the ground with earth jutsu, erasing all the craters that had been made over the course of the exams. A few jounin had gathered in the Kage box. Gaara’s teacher and another guy with red hair were talking to the Kazekage, while Shisui and some guy that looked like Shikamaru talked to the Hokage. 

Naruto looked for Obito, Kakashi, and Narumi, but couldn’t find them anywhere, even as the hour got closer and closer to being over. Eventually, he did find Sasuke, who trudged up the stairs to join them. 

“What happened?” Sasuke said. “No one will tell me anything.” 

“Minori was kidnapped,” Heiwa said. “Kakashi-sensei and Obito-sensei are looking for him.” 

“Then what the hell are we doing standing around?” Sasuke demanded. 

“Yeah!” Naruto exclaimed. “Who cares about some dumb ceremony, we should be looking for Minori!” 

“Several ANBU tracking teams are looking for him,” Itachi said. “Leave them to their jobs. 

Sasuke settled down at that. Naruto glared at him. “Brother complex,” he mouthed to Sasuke, when Itachi wasn’t looking. 

Sasuke kicked him. Naruto kicked him back. 

“Naruto . . . Uzumaki.” 

Naruto looked around to find Gaara staring at him. As he was distracted, Sasuke got in one last kick. “Gah! Uh, yeah, what is it?” 

“I want to speak with you,” Gaara said. 

“Oh, sure!” Naruto said. 

No one said anything for several minutes. 

“Alone,” Gaara said, at last.

“Oh,” Naruto said. “Yeah, okay. I’ll see you guys later. Let me know if anyone comes to tell us about Minori.” 

Naruto led the way down to some of the unused rooms near the medical facilities. “What did you want to talk about?” 

“You said you wanted to be . . . friends,” Gaara said. “Was that true?” 

“Yeah, of course!” Naruto held out his hand. “You and I are jinchuuriki, so we should stick together.” 

“What do friends do?” Gaara asked. 

“Lots of stuff. Train, hang out, eat meals together, stuff like that,” Naruto said. 

“Hang out?” 

“Spend time together, just talking or being around each other,” Naruto explained. 

“I see. And this is a requirement for friendship?” 

Naruto scratched at the back of his head. “Uh, I wouldn’t really call it a requirement. It’s just a thing that you can do. I guess it would be kinda hard with you in Suna, but we can write letters or something.” 

Gaara nodded. “Very well. I will write letters.” 

“Cool.” Naruto hunted for a topic of conversation. “So, uh, what do you do for fun?” 

“I train,” Gaara said. “Alone.” 

“Cool!” Naruto said again. “I train a lot too, but usually with my team or my uncle.” 

“Yashamaru trains Kankuro and Temari. My father trains me sometimes,” Gaara said. “I wake up early to train. If my father has time I train with him. Sometimes I have a mission with my team. I train more. Yashamaru and I eat dinner together. Then I sleep.” 

“Isn’t that kinda . . . boring? You should get a hobby! Like fuinjutsu. Although I guess that’s technically more training . . . or shogi! I know lots of people that play shogi. Oh, or gardening! My uncle has a garden.” 

Gaara nodded. “Very well. I will start a garden.” 

“That’s not what I . . . oh, whatever. Tell me how your garden goes!” Naruto said. 

“I will include updates in my regular reports,” Gaara said. 

Naruto snorted. “It’s a letter between friends, not a mission report, ya know,” he said. “Relax a little, Gaara.” 

After a moment, Gaara nodded. “I will try . . . Naruto.” With that, he turned away sharply. “We should go. The closing ceremony will be soon.” 

They walked up the stairs together, and then went their separate ways, Naruto going to his friends and Gaara returning to his team. 

“What was that about?” Sakura asked. 

“He wants to be friends . . . I think,” Naruto said. 

“That reminds me,” Heiwa said thoughtfully. “Naruto, what was that technique you used during your fight with Neji, and again with Gaara? Was it something you learned with Jiraiya?” 

“Yep!” Naruto said. 

Heiwa looked at him expectantly. 

Naruto hunted for something to say; how did you explain a cloak of semi-malevolent chakra?

“I believe the proctor is about to call everyone down,” Itachi said. 

Naruto took back every joke he had ever made about Itachi. Itachi was a god among men. 

“We should start heading down,” Sakura said. 

Sure enough, as soon as they started down the stairs, the proctor said, “Would the competitors please come down to the arena?” 

They all lined up in front of the three Kage. There were only ten of them. Lee was still in the medical room, healing from the damage that the Lotus technique had done to him, and Minori was still missing. 

“Congratulations,” Sakumo said. “You all did well and made it to the final round. Not all of you will become chuunin today, but every single one of you represented your villages well. Now, when I call your name, please step forward.” 

“From Sunagakure, Gaara!” 

Gaara stepped forward and received a tan flak jacket from the Kazekage. 

“From Konahagakure, Rock Lee!” 

As Lee wasn’t there, Sakumo moved on to the next name. 

“From Konohagakure, Naruto Uzumaki!” 

Naruto held in a whoop of joy but couldn’t restrain a grin as he stepped forward to receive his green flak jacket. Sakumo smiled at him, as did Tsubame. 

Sakumo took a breath before the next name. “From Konohakagure, Minori Hatake!” 

Sakumo looked up at the audience. Naruto thought he was looking at the daimyo’s box, but couldn’t be sure from the direction he was facing. “I present to you . . . your new chuunin!” 

The audience burst into applause and cheering. Naruto attempted to grin, but couldn’t. Not when he knew Minori should have been standing next to him with a jacket of his own. 

The proctor escorted them from the stadium as the audience exited the arena. The competitors went out a side exit, so they weren’t mobbed by congratulations on their way out. Outside, the teachers waited for them with the teammates that hadn’t made it to the final round. Obito and Kakashi were still nowhere to be seen; instead, Itachi waited for them with Hinata. 

“Congratulations, Naruto,” Itachi said. “You performed admirably in the exams. All of you did,” he said, looking around the group. 

“I’ll get it next time,” Sakura said confidently. Her confidence faltered briefly. “Senpai . . . is Minori . . .” 

“The ANBU are still looking, as are Kakashi-senpai, Obito-senpai, Shishou, and Shisui,” Itachi said. “They will find him. In the meantime, I have been asked to tell you that you are welcome to stay with my family, Naruto. My mother refuses to take no for an answer.”

“Oh. Thanks, that’s really nice of her,” Naruto said. Even though he was friends with Sasuke and kind of friends with Itachi, he hadn’t met their mother more than once or twice. She was always really busy with the clan and the Military Police, from what he gathered. 

The others left to join their families, while Naruto walked with Itachi and Sasuke to the Uchiha compound. Sasuke was discussing the matches with Itachi, but Naruto couldn’t bring himself to join in. 

He’d become a chuunin, and all he wanted was to go back to yesterday. 


	41. Chapter 41

The Uchiha compound always felt a little weird to Naruto, like every single old person was watching for the moment he took a step out of line. No wonder Sasuke was so irritable if this was where he lived; Naruto was starting to feel antsy and he’d only just stepped through the gates. He was half convinced that they wouldn’t have let him through the gates at all, if not for Itachi’s presence. 

Naruto could still feel the gazes of the Uchiha on his back as Itachi led the way to one of the larger houses in the compound. “Make yourself at home,” he said, as he reached into a cupboard and pulled out a pair of slippers for Naruto. Sasuke, who had been trailing along silently, had already kicked off his shoes and stepped into slippers. 

Mikoto stepped into the entrance hall. Her eyes roved over them, and after a moment, she relaxed. “Welcome home. Congratulations, Naruto.” 

Sasuke made an irritated noise and stomped off towards the back of the house. Itachi followed him, and before he knew it, Naruto was alone with Mikoto. 

“Uh, thanks,” he said, not really knowing what else to say to her. 

She gave him a slight smile. “Dinner is ready—don’t worry about waiting for Sasuke, he’ll eat when he’s ready. You must be hungry.” 

Naruto wasn’t sure he was; now that he didn’t have the exams to focus on, all he could think about was Minori, and the worries swirling around his head had soured his appetite. “Thanks,” he said, anyways. 

Mikoto led him to the kitchen and served him a hearty serving of katsudon. He took a small bite to start, but the moment he tasted it, it was like all his hunger returned at once. Before he knew it, Naruto had devoured the entire bowl. 

“That was delicious, Ba-san!” Naruto declared. 

Mikoto’s smile was a little bigger now, he thought. “I’m glad. Seconds?” 

Naruto, grinning, held out his bowl. “Yes, please!” 

For some reason, that made Mikoto laugh quietly as she filled his bowl again. He ate this second one more slowly, occasionally glancing up from the bowl to observe her. “Hey, Ba-san,” he said. “You were on a genin team with my mom, right?” 

Her eyes widened in surprise for a moment before she schooled her expression. “Your uncle informed you, I take it?” 

“Yeah, ages ago,” Naruto said. He nudged a piece of pork with his chopsticks. “Uh, what was she like? I mean, Ji-chan told me some stuff. Mostly stuff about her and my dad. But I was kinda curious, still.” 

Mostly, he wanted a distraction from the nauseating worry that had returned with a vengeance now that he’d downed a bowl and a half of food. Mikoto didn’t question his motives, though, just looked thoughtfully into the distance. “She was very brash,” she said. “I disliked her at first because she was so loud and bold. But she was very kind, and generous, and strong, and before I knew it, I had come to see her as my closest friend. I wasn’t certain whether we would end up on the same team, but I had hoped that we would.” 

Naruto grinned. “Like Minori and Sakura and me. Except only the two of you.” 

“Well, your mother always hoped that your father would be on a team with us. I have to admit, I hoped that he wouldn’t. I was frightfully jealous whenever she paid more attention to him than me,” Mikoto laughed softly. Naruto found himself grinning at the mental image, as well. “Your mother had a way of drawing people to her—you could never ignore her when she walked into a room. And her temper! I don’t think there was a single boy in our class at the Academy who wasn’t terrified of her when we graduated.”

Naruto couldn’t help but laugh. “She sounds awesome. And you knew my dad, too?” 

“Not as well as I knew her, but I did,” Mikoto said. “We used to tease him horribly when we were in the Academy. He always had his nose in a book, back then . . . Kushina never could resist a bit of pigtail-pulling. He was always smart—a genius, really—but neither of us had any idea what he’d become. Kushina always said she wanted to fall in love with someone who both had her back and could hold their own against her. And that was your father.” 

“And, uh,” Naruto hesitated for a moment. “D’you think . . . what d’you think they would’ve thought of the exams?” 

Mikoto’s smile was soft and sad. “They would have been unbelievably proud of you. Kushina would have been the first one down on the field to congratulate you, and your father would have been right beside her. They loved you more than anything. Kushina was overjoyed when she found out she was pregnant—I think she told everyone who ended up in a conversation with her for more than five minutes. She couldn’t wait to meet you.” 

Naruto scrubbed at his eyes with the palm of his hand. “Thanks, Ba-san.” 

“Was there anything else you wanted to ask?” 

“Uh. Yeah. I mean, you don’t have to answer, but . . . do you know anything about how they died?” He waved his hands frantically, as if that would somehow explain the horrible question that had somehow escaped from his brain. “I mean, I asked Ji-chan once, but he never really answered, and I didn’t really wanna ask again because I think it made him really upset even if he acted like he was fine with it, so—” 

“It’s fine. I understand,” Mikoto said. “The official line is that the seal broke because it was weakened by childbirth, that Kushina died when the Kyuubi broke free, and that Minato was killed while defeating the Kyuubi.” 

Naruto swallowed and nodded. Mikoto gave him a careful look, weighing him with her eyes. “I have always doubted this,” she murmured. “Kushina and Minato were both fuinjutsu experts, and she consulted Jiraiya, Narumi, the Uzukage—everyone assured her that so long as they took the proper precautions, the seal would be fine.” 

She picked up his bowl, which had since gone cold, and took it to the sink to be washed. “Do you know why I was placed on Kushina’s team?”

Naruto shook his head, only to realize that with her back to him, she couldn’t see him. “No.” 

“Because the Sharingan is capable of controlling the tailed beasts,” Mikoto said. “There were . . . rumors . . . that an Uchiha was involved with the incident.” 

Naruto’s mouth felt dry. “Was an Uchiha involved?” 

“I couldn’t say,” Mikoto said. “If it was one of the Uchiha in the clan, then they likely did not inform my husband of their actions. But there are rogue Uchiha, including one in particular who has taken action against Konoha before.” 

For a moment, the room was silent but for the rush of water as she washed dishes. 

At last, Mikoto spoke again. “Be careful, Naruto. I’m certain he has his eyes on you.” 

The door to the kitchen opened, and Itachi stepped through. “Mother, Sasuke and I will take dinner in his room, if you don’t mind.” 

Mikoto smiled at him. “Of course not. Would you mind showing Naruto to his room?” 

Naruto spent the night in a guest room that was well-furnished but still felt empty. He woke early the next day, before anyone else in the house was awake. He laid there for a moment before leaving the Uchiha compound and heading home, alone. Narumi still wasn’t home, and Minori’s house was still empty, but even being alone was better than being in the Uchiha compound. 

He was only alone for a minute or two before Narumi walked in through the front door. 

Naruto jolted to his feet. “Ji-chan! Is Minori—?” 

“Still no news. Mikoto told us you’d gone home, so I was dismissed. It’s better for you not to be alone in case someone decides to go after you, too,” Narumi said. 

“Oh. I didn’t think of that. Do you think that’ll happen?” Naruto asked. If the weird thing that had taken Minori came back, he didn’t know if Narumi could stop it, but at least he’d probably be taken to wherever Minori was. Then they could help each other escape. 

“You’re one of the jinchuuriki, so there’s always a chance, especially after what you did at the exams. Your mother was kidnapped once, when she was young,” Narumi said. “Your father saved her.” 

Naruto perked up. “He did? You never told me about that, ya know!” 

Narumi chuckled and ruffled his hair. “How about I tell you the story over ramen? It’s not every day you make chuunin. I’ll let you eat as much as you want.” 

Naruto frowned. “I dunno. I’m not really that hungry, Ji-chan.” 

“Naruto.” Narumi knelt in front of him and put his hands on Naruto’s shoulders. “Minori will be fine. We’ll find him, I promise. In the meantime, he wouldn’t want you putting your life on hold.” 

Naruto nodded and clenched his fist resolutely. “I’ll show him how strong I got as soon as he gets back!” 

“That’s the spirit. Now, how about some ramen?” 

The two of them set off together, discussing the matches and the fuinjutsu he’d used as they went. Ji-chan and the other adults would find Minori, like Heiwa had said, and then he and Sakura and Naruto would all go on missions together, and things would be back to normal. 

***

The house with the maple tree in front was silent. Narumi stared up at it for a moment, recalling the days when it had been filled with the sounds of Kakashi and Obito laughing and training and fighting, before stepping through the gate and opening the door. The house was clean, in an unlived-in way; Sakumo spent most of his time at the office and rarely went home. 

Now, though, he was sitting in front of the household shrine, slumped over with his head resting on one bent knee. Narumi sat down next to him, pressing up against his side. 

“Ran took me to the place where you found Kakashi,” Sakumo said, and shook his head. “Nothing.” 

“We’ll find him,” Narumi assured him. 

Sakumo fumbled for his pocket, eventually pulling out a vial of blood. “Here. Just in case you find something—you can use this to summon Ran.” He took a deep, shaky breath. “I’d hoped—Madara hadn’t done anything in so long. I have to admit, I hoped he’d died. Or given up, at least.” 

“I don’t think he ever will,” Narumi murmured. 

Sakumo raised his head, his gaze landing on the picture of Kaede grinning at them from the shrine. Narumi bumped his shoulder against Sakumo’s. “She would have loved Minori.” 

Sakumo laughed softly. “She would have. I tell her about him, sometimes. He’s so much like her. Cheerful in the face of anything, determined to be good at the things he struggles with . . .” 

“He’s strong. He’ll be okay, Sakumo,” Narumi said. “We’ll bring him home.” 

Sakumo leaned against him. “Do you ever think . . . he’s so young, Narumi. It seems like only yesterday that I met him for the first time. And I send him into danger every day. He’s never known anything other than being a shinobi. And sometimes—sometimes I wish that he wasn’t.” 

Sakumo took a deep breath. “He’ll be a good chuunin. He’s skilled, he works well with people, he’ll be a good leader once he gets some experience. But making him chuunin, knowing that it means he’ll be facing more danger than ever, was one of the hardest things I’ve done. Sometimes I . . . question the wisdom of the system we have in place.” 

“You mean the exams?” 

“No. Well, partially.” Sakumo waved a hand. “Children enter the Academy at eight and graduate at twelve, typically. That’s . . . around forty years ago, for me, but I was a genin even earlier than that. And they don’t know what they’re getting into—how many students do you see bragging about all the missing-nin they’re going to fight, and all the princesses they’re going to save? They’re children, and we send them into war.” 

He shook his head and sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m being maudlin.” 

“It’s alright,” Narumi said, taking a moment to think over what Sakumo said. “I’ve wanted to be a shinobi ever since I could remember. I admired them, envied them—I wanted people to treat me the way they treated the shinobi. With pride. With respect. I never wanted to be anything other than a shinobi. And yeah, I didn’t know what I was getting into. I thought I’d be saving princesses and fighting epic battles. And it was . . . hard. Watching my friends die around me. Sending people into danger and never knowing if they’d return safely. But . . . I think it was worth it. To protect the people I love.” 

“I agree. But I have to admit, I’m looking forward to retiring. I’m not sure I could handle Minori becoming a jounin.” He chuckled softly and let his head fall to the side, resting against Narumi’s shoulder. He tapped his fingers against his leg, clearly lost in thought. “I had some ideas about village security I wanted to talk to you about. In case you had any fuinjutsu-related ideas.” 

“I always have fuinjutsu-related ideas,” Narumi said. 

“I should have had security updated ages ago,” Sakumo said. “I should have expected something like this would happen.” 

“I should’ve too. I expected something, but not this,” Narumi said. “Honestly, I thought we might have troubles with Gaara.” 

“The jinchuuriki from Suna?” Sakumo said. “Yeah, I thought so too. You should’ve been in the Hokage box, I thought Rasa was going to kill me with his eyes alone. He definitely knows his Daimyo has been making offers to Konoha, and he probably knows that I only refused because I know what that would do to Suna’s economy. When Minori—when it happened, and I saw Rasa’s smug expression, I just about punched his face in.” 

“We’ll find him,” Narumi said, wrapping his arm around Sakumo. “I’ll find him, even if I have to tear the whole damn country apart.” 

“Thank you,” Sakumo said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

Narumi took a slow breath and tried not to dwell on the time he’d left behind. “Well, you’d be without your favorite shogi partner, for one,” he said, trying for a playful tone. “And you wouldn’t have anyone to surprise you with lunch when you’re working.” 

“Speaking of which,” Sakumo said, getting to his feet and groaning as his knees creaked. “I’ve been sitting here for too long. I’m pretty sure I skipped lunch entirely. Dinner?” 

He offered a hand. Narumi clasped it and let Sakumo pulling it up. “Dinner,” he agreed, and pulled Sakumo towards the door. 

***

Kakashi walked through the front door to find Obito on the couch. He looked up as Kakashi shut the door, his eyes red-rimmed from crying. 

“Anything?” he asked. 

Kakashi shook his head. “Narumi and my father have been talking about upgrades to village security,” he said, because that was something, at least. 

“Good. That’s—that’s good,” Obito said, with a dark chuckle. “It’s a bit too little, too late.” 

Kakashi sat on the couch next to him; Obito had broken out the scrapbooking materials, but hadn’t actually done any scrapbooking. Pictures and stickers and scraps of paper were scattered all over the table around the album, open to the page for their genin team photos. Sakura, Naruto, and Minori wearing masks, their eyes lit up with mischief, and Sasuke, Hinata, and Heiwa wearing goggles. 

“Haven’t had a chance to do much scrapbooking,” Obito mumbled. “We’ve been so busy with the kids, and preparing for the exams—” 

His breath hitched. He breathed in, and then breathed out. Tentatively, Kakashi put a hand on his back. Obito didn’t relax, but he didn’t move away, either. 

“You,” he said, and cleared his throat. “You were with Madara. Wha—what do you think he’s doing to Minori?” 

“I was unconscious or recovering for most of it.” Or in terrible pain, but Kakashi wasn’t going to say that; Obito had enough nightmares about what Minori could be suffering without Kakashi adding to them. “Physically, he didn’t hurt me. It was more . . . psychological.” 

Psychological torture, he almost said, but he managed to cut himself off. 

“Psychological how?” 

Kakashi ran a hand through his hair and forced himself to think back to something he’d spent a lot of time trying to forget. “He’d tell me about—how the world was terrible, basically. How we would all die for nothing. How the world was nothing but pain and suffering and madness. He wanted—he wanted to break me. He wanted me to see everyone I love hurt. I’ve already spoken to my father about this,” he added. “The kids all have an ANBU tailing them, just in case. As do you and I.” 

“Yeah, I noticed,” Obito said. He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Okay. Okay, so he’s being told a lot of terrible things, and Madara might try to hurt the kids to get to him. We’ll just—we’ll be careful.” 

“We should avoid missions out of the village for the time being,” Kakashi said. 

“Fuck. The kids will love that,” Obito said. He took a deep, rattling breath. “It’ll be okay. He’ll be okay. Minori’s strong, he’s not gonna be bothered by some old bastard talking to him. He takes after you, and you were fine. He’s gonna be fine.” 

Kakashi rubbed his hand over Obito’s back as Obito leaned against him, and didn’t say that Minori was a lot more like Obito than Obito wanted to admit. 

“We’ll find him,” Kakashi said, instead. 

***

With both Kakashi and Obito busy, Sasuke wasn’t sure what to do with himself. Training had been cancelled for the day, according to a note brought by a little snake. His mother and Itachi were both busy with their own work, and he would rather train alone than with anyone else in his clan. With nothing else to do, he returned to their usual training ground to practice by himself. 

He was in the middle of warming up when hesitant footsteps drew his attention. 

“G-good morning,” Hinata said. 

“Morning. Training?” 

Hinata nodded. “Father is . . . training with Hanabi and Neji-nii-san, so . . .” 

“Good,” Sasuke said. “You can train with me. I want you to show me the Gentle Fist style.” 

Hinata’s eyes widened. “M-me? But I’m not very good. You should ask Neji-nii-san if you want to learn . . .” 

Sasuke scowled. “I’m not interested in learning from him. I want you to show me. You’re bad at attacking comrades, right? So just show me the moves on your own.” 

“Oh. Um, I can’t show you the main house styles . . . but the basics and the branch house techniques, I’m sure would be fine . . .” 

Hinata’s mumbling faded into silence as she shifted into the Gentle Fist stance. Sasuke activated his Sharingan and watched as she made her way through the basics of the style. The name “Gentle Fist” seemed like a bit of a misnomer to him; it was fast and brutal, meant to target the weakest spots of the body to eliminate an enemy as quickly as possible. He’d seen the results that had come when Neji used it on Hinata and Heiwa, and that was when he hadn’t learned it properly. 

Hinata was much better when she wasn’t fighting someone. She never did well when Obito made them spar, always pulling back before her hits connected, no matter how hard Sasuke hit or how fast he moved. He’d thought she was looking down on him at first, but he thought he knew her a little better now. 

“Why do you use a style that isn’t suited for you?” he asked, bluntly. 

Hinata stumbled, but quickly went through the move again. “Oh, um . . . Obito-sensei mentioned that, too. He said he was looking for a style that wasn’t so . . . aggressive.” 

Sasuke nodded. “You should come to the Military Police with me.” 

Hinata stumbled so badly that for a moment he thought she would fall over. “Wh-why?” 

“The Military Police often have to subdue civilians. As such, they are not allowed to bring physical harm to them, no matter how much the civilians try to harm the police arresting them,” Sasuke said. “They practice a style meant to subdue and restrain your enemy without physically harming them. My mother can show you the style.” 

Hinata stumbled over her words instead of her feet, this time. Eventually, she just bowed. “Thank you.” 

“She’s busy right now,” Sasuke said. “In the meantime, show me where the tenketsu are. I can’t see them with the Sharingan, but I can memorize the general locations of the important ones.” 

In the end, Hinata ended up going over the sixty-four tenketsu targeted by the Eight Trigrams, Sixty-Four palms. Afterwards, Sasuke repeated the Gentle Fist moves he had memorized with the Sharingan, and even managed to persuade her into some more low-key sparring. The key to getting Hinata to spar was not, as he had thought, being more vicious, but in slowing down until it was more of a dance than an actual fight. He gradually increased the speed until they were moving at a pace closer to what he was more comfortable with. 

By the time the afternoon rolled around, he was sweating much more than he usually was after sparring with Hinata. Hinata, too, was flushed and sweaty, but she looked happy. Sasuke counted this mission as a success—Hinata would likely be more willing to train with him, so he would get more experience with fighting users of the Gentle Fist. Neji was going to be in the next exam, too, and Sasuke was going to beat him one way or another. 

***

“Look alive, kid. You’ve got a visitor.” 

Heiwa looked up from her book—something written by the Shodaime, although she wasn’t sure if it was meant to be an official record or a personal diary—at her mother’s words. To her surprise, the Sandaime stood in the doorway behind her mother. 

“Sandaime-sama! Come in, please,” she said, setting her book on the porch beside her. 

The Sandaime sat beside her, taking in the garden in front of them. Neither Dan nor Tsunade were particularly good at gardening, but the Senju clan had some attendants who cared for the estate, even now that the clan was much smaller than it had been in the past. 

“You did well in the exams,” he said. 

She frowned. “I lost my temper against Neji. I shouldn’t have run at him like that.” 

“A bad habit you will grow out of in time,” the Sandaime assured her, before he chuckled. “Or perhaps not. Your mother still has quite the temper, even now.” 

“I heard that, Sensei!” 

He looked at Heiwa as if to say,  _ see what I mean?  _

“All shinobi have bad habits, or other personality flaws,” the Sandaime continued. “Your teacher, for instance, has the unfortunate habit of lateness. What matters is how you manage these flaws and, when encountered with a problem, whether you give up or move on. So, Heiwa-chan, what do you intend to do?” 

Heiwa met his gaze. “I’m going to get stronger and pass the exams next time. Becoming a chuunin is the next step to becoming Hokage, and I won’t give up on my dream.” 

The Sandaime puffed on his pipe and nodded. “Then, should we continue to meet in the mornings, or would you prefer to switch to the afternoons?” 

For a second, Heiwa could only gape at him in surprise. “But the month of training for the exam is over. You still want to train me?” 

The Sandaime smiled at her. “I find that I’ve missed passing on my knowledge. All of my students are grown now, with students or children of their own. Would you deny a retired, old man his favorite pastime?” 

Heiwa restrained a smile, and instead nodded seriously. “I wouldn’t dream of it.” 

“Then I will wait for you at the regular training ground—I assume that, given Obito’s habit of lateness, your mornings will be more free than your evenings. Ah! Before I forget.” The Sandaime handed her a stack of papers. “Apprenticeship papers.” 

Heiwa stared at them. The words stared back at her. She knew all the characters, but her mind refused to make sense of them. 

Apprentice? To the Sandaime? Her?

She heard a door close, and realized too late that the Sandaime must have left without her saying goodbye. She’d have to apologize for her rudeness when she saw him again. 

She looked down at the papers. 

_ Official Apprenticeship Registration form.  _

She laughed and thrust them in the air. “Ha! Take that, Neji Hyuuga!” 

She was going to destroy him in sixth months. 

***

Their regular meetings had been cut in half since Minori had been kidnapped. Sakura didn’t blame Obito-sensei and Kakashi-sensei, of course not. Obito and Kakashi took alternate training days. It was a bit hard, training with only one teacher and five students, and Sasuke and Naruto kept bickering during the missions, but Sakura could only imagine how her parents would react if she was suddenly kidnapped in the middle of the village. Not that she would be, since she wasn’t anyone particularly important, but still. 

On the other hand, now that she only met with her team every other day instead of every day, she had a lot of time to kill. On the plus side, Itachi and Izumi weren’t involved in the search and rescue mission, so she’d been using her time to train with one or both of them. If they were both busy, she put in time at the medical school and hospital or trained with her teammates unsupervised. 

She was the only one of her teammates to have failed the exams, so she was determined to pass the next ones. To that end, she went to Tenten, easily the most approachable member of Team Gai. 

Sakura located Tenten browsing a weapon shop, the third one Sakura had checked. She waited until Tenten had made her purchases before speaking to her. “Tenten? Can I ask you something?” 

Tenten looked up from the kunai she had been admiring. “Huh? Sure, go ahead. Let me guess, something about weapons.” 

“Actually, no, although if you have advice I’d love to hear it,” Sakura said. “Actually, I wanted to know if you were planning on joining the next chuunin exams?” 

“Oh, I get it!” Tenten said. “You want to join Neji and I. Please, do. I need to have someone else sane on this team. We meet at five in the morning every day. Even weekends.” 

“My team meets every other day right now,” Sakura said. “Because of . . .” 

Tenten nodded. “Right, I heard. Gai-sensei is your sensei’s Eternal Rival,” she said. “His training regimen has been even more insane than usual lately. Maybe he’ll calm down now that a fresh face is joining us . . . anyways, I’ll let him know, so come by whenever you’re free. We’re usually training until the afternoon, and then we do a mission.” 

Sakura woke early and went to their training ground Team Gai frequented with some time to spare. Evidently, she wasn’t as early as she thought because she found the entire team training together. Even Lee was there, wearing his new chuunin vest over his green jumpsuit. 

“Sakura!” Tenten called, waving her over. “Come on, you’re right on time. We were just warming up.” 

Lee gave her an exuberant thumbs-up. “Sakura-san! It is an absolute pleasure to train with you!” 

His formal speech gave her the image of a weirdly enthusiastic, loud Itachi. She tried not to stare too much at the green jumpsuit. “Thank you for having me.” She bowed to Gai, who gave her a thumbs up as well. 

“Yosh! I am Konoha’s Green Beast, Gai Maito!” Gai declared. “Welcome, student of my Eternal Rival! Lee, we must train ourselves to our utmost limits to inspire our young companion!” 

“Yes, Gai-sensei!” Lee declared. “I will run 200 laps around the village on my hands! If I can’t do that, I will do 1000 one-fingered push-ups!” 

He took off running, Gai right behind him. 

Tenten laughed at Sakura’s expression. “Don’t worry,” she said. “Just do your best. Push yourself to your limits and then some, and Gai will be happy. Neji, wait up!” 

Tenten took off on Neji’s heels. Sakura shook her head and followed after her, wondering what on earth she had gotten herself into. 

***

“Daddy, Papa, I’m home!” Minori shut the front door behind him and toed off his shoes, as usual. The house was quiet, which was strange. His parents should have been home by now. 

Minori walked further into the house. Dinner wasn’t on the stove, and the kitchen was immaculately clean. He stopped beside the dining room table and frowned. “Papa? Daddy?” 

A hand closed around his throat, shoving him backwards onto the kitchen table. He scrabbled at the hands around his throat, only for them to be pried away and slammed against the table, held in place by a kunai stabbed through each palm. 

Obito’s mangekyo sharingan stared into his eyes. He cupped Minori’s cheek gently with one hand, as the other held the tip of his tanto above Minori’s eye. 

“Hush,” Obito said. “It’ll be okay, Minori. Papa’s here.” 

He plunged the knife down.

And Minori screamed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Does anyone remember (way, way back) when Tsubame mentioned that Tsubasa was actually meant to marry the princess of Nami ten years before the start of the story? Well, if you were ever curious about that, you're in luck—I have a new short posted.


	42. Chapter 42

Red blood dripped down his hands. Minori stared down at Kakashi’s head. His body was somewhere else, Minori didn’t know where. Kakashi’s eye stared blankly up at him. 

Minori looked to the side. Obito’s eyes stared up at him, the mangekyo still active. 

He looked around. The streets of Konoha ran red, bodies scattered in the streets, people he had known once upon a time. 

Sakumo. 

Shisui. 

Itachi. 

Sasuke. 

Naruto. 

Sakura. 

Blood dripped down his hands. 

Minori sat on the ground, legs crossed, and picked up Obito’s head. He stared into those red, red eyes. Eyes which would never turn black again, would never smile at Minori when he came home from training, would never sparkle in amusement when Minori or Kakashi did something silly. He would never hug Minori just because he wanted to, or pick him up and swing him around, or show Minori cool techniques. 

Minori set Obito’s head in his lap and picked up Kakashi’s. Kakashi would never take off his mask like it was a secret just for the two of them, would never let Minori ride on his shoulders during festivals, would never show him tricks with his Mokuton. He pulled off Kakashi’s headband to reveal the empty eye socket. Minori ran one hand over his own eyes. They were both there, but for how long? 

He set both heads to the side, instead going to the bodies. He pulled them both into the center of the street, side by side, and matched the heads with the necks, keeping them in place with spare bandages. 

He knelt beside them. “Daddy. Papa. Wake up.” 

Blood puddled around his knees. 

Tears welled in his eyes and poured down his cheeks. “Wake up.” 

Minori hunched over their bodies and pressed his hands against his mouth to hold in his sobs. He was all alone, now, in this Konoha full of blood and death and pain. He would stay here, forever. 

His eyes burned. 

The world shattered. 

Minori opened his eyes and found himself staring up at a rock wall. He turned his head to the side, and saw something that might have been a person, although it was hard to see the figure clearly. He channeled chakra to his eyes, activating his Sharingan. 

And, as suddenly as that, he _knew_ what to do. 

“Kamui.” 

He fell more than he walked through the portal that appeared at his side; just as he entered the portal, he saw the figure turn and caught sight of a mane of black hair surrounding a pale, withered face. 

He fell out of the portal and hit the pavement. Gasps and shrieks assaulted his ears; shivering, shuddering, Minori tried to get his feet underneath him. 

“Get back! Get back!” 

Hands appeared in his field of vision. Minori scuttled away, putting as much distance between them as he could until he collided with something solid. 

“Minori? It’s me.” 

Minori looked up, into Shisui’s eyes, and remembered the last time he had looked into those eyes, as Shisui stabbed his tanto into Minori’s chest over and over and over and over again, as Minori grabbed the tanto and turned it around and sliced it from one side of Shisui’s stomach to the other. 

He screamed and lashed out, punching Shisui square in the face. 

Shisui fell back, and Minori scrambled away, diving between the legs of civilians to escape. 

“After him!” 

“No, don’t chase him!” 

An ANBU appeared in front of him, and Minori darted away, down an alley, jumping over a sleeping drunk as he ran. He looked behind him, and didn’t see the ANBU, but he knew they hadn’t gone. They were chasing him, and then they would capture him, and then they would tie him down and pluck out his eyes. 

A swirl of leaves, and Shisui appeared in front of him, holding out a seal. Minori ran right into it. 

“Sleep,” Shisui said. “It’ll be okay.” 

He’d heard those words too many times to think that they were true. 

***

Heiwa had heard that Minori had returned; everyone had. Obito had been summoned away by a small snake in the middle of training, leaving so quickly none of them had a chance to ask him what was going on. Since then, neither Obito nor Kakashi had shown up for training, and her mother hadn’t left the hospital. They had heard from Narumi that Minori been found and tried to visit him, only to be turned away at the front desk. Naruto had wanted to sneak in, and Sasuke had been willing, but Heiwa, Hinata, and Sakura had managed to dissuade them. 

In the meantime, they had been continuing their training. Heiwa had met with the Sandaime in the morning, as was their custom, but now she was reading a book on wind jutsu that the Sandaime had given her. With her mother and Nawanuke gone, the house was as peaceful as it ever got. 

The door slammed open. Heiwa bid goodbye to her peaceful afternoon. 

“Good, you’re here,” her mother said. “Grab your things, you’re going to visit Minori in the hospital. I’ll explain on the way.” 

Heiwa quickly grabbed a few books she thought Minori would find interesting. There was no telling how long he would be in the hospital, after all, and he would probably appreciate something to read that wasn’t a children’s book or some dime-store garbage. His parents had probably brought him some things already, but Heiwa’s books were better. 

The moment Heiwa walked downstairs, her mother opened the door and left. Heiwa hurried to keep up, making two steps for every one of her mother’s. 

“No one except hospital staff has been able to visit Minori since he was admitted,” Tsunade said. 

“No one?” Heiwa said. “But it’s been a week.” 

“We let Kakashi and Obito in at the same time at first. Minori screamed and tried to jump out the window. We tried just Obito, and Minori had a panic attack the moment he walked through the door. We tried just Kakashi, and Minori tried to swing the IV at him. Similar results with Sakura, Naruto, and Shisui. You’re the only person close to him we haven’t tried yet.” 

Heiwa couldn’t imagine eternally cheerful Minori, who loved his parents more than anything in the world, trying to swing an IV at Kakashi. “What happened to him?” 

“Classified,” Tsunade said. “Just know that it wasn’t pretty. We’re working on it, but in the meantime he needs some company that isn’t a medical professional. He needs a friend.” 

Heiwa nodded. “I can do that.” 

“I know you can.” They reached the front desk, where a nurse waited. “I have to go. Take her to Minori Hatake’s room.” 

As she walked through the waiting room, she caught sight of Kakashi and Obito sitting in a corner. Kakashi was slumped over, his head buried in Obito’s shoulder as Obito ran a hand through his hair and murmured to him. As she walked by, Obito caught her eyes and gave her a shaky smile. 

Heiwa attempted to return the smile, but she had a feeling hers wasn’t much better. 

Minori’s room was guarded by two ANBU, a cat and a boar. Heiwa avoided looking at their creepy, porcelain faces as she walked into the room. Heiwa hesitated just inside the doorway, in case Minori decided to take a swing at her with the IV. She realized quickly that she didn’t need to worry about that, at least; the IV was clearly attached to the wall. Minori was sitting up in bed, staring out the window at the village. As the door shut, he turned around to face her. 

He blinked at her. His eyes had massive bags underneath them. He had always been pale, but now his skin was practically translucent, and he was far too skinny, like he hadn’t eaten for the entire sixth months that he had been gone. 

“Oh,” he said. “Nee-chan.” 

Heiwa inhaled sharply. He hadn’t called her nee-chan since before the Academy, since they had decided it would be too weird for him to call her that when they were in the same class. 

Minori plucked listlessly at the blanket over his lap. 

Heiwa held up her bag like an offering. “I brought books.” 

Minori gave her a small, tiny smile. “About the Nidaime?” 

“The Shodaime. Sandaime-sama says I should branch out and study a variety of leadership methods.” She pulled out a book, yet another journal. 

Minori leaned back against the pillows. “Read to me, nee-chan?” 

Heiwa smiled; he always asked her that when he was little, always giving the same excuse for why he couldn’t read it himself. “The characters are too hard?” 

Minori pressed his hands against his eyes. “My eyes hurt.” 

She sat next to him and opened the book, and then hesitated. “Do you need me to call a nurse?” 

He shook his head. “I’m tired of being experimented on.” 

She turned that phrase over in her head, _experimented on,_ and set it aside to examine later. She opened the book to the first page, even though she had already gotten halfway through it, and started to read. 

***

Heiwa returned to the hospital every afternoon, each time laden down with books and whatever items Kakashi and Obito thought Minori might want. Even two weeks after she started visiting, he panicked at the thought of seeing them. Sometimes, when there was a sudden noise, he would activate his Sharingan, like he was expecting to be attacked at any moment. 

His Sharingan looked different now. Heiwa tried looking it up in her books, not wanting to mention it to him, but she hadn’t found any substantial information yet. 

She spent most of her time at the hospital reading to him, since he didn’t seem to want to talk at all. To be honest, she wasn’t even certain if he was listening to her at all, but he never asked her to leave, so she kept coming. 

She was halfway through a journal the Sandaime had written on jutsu creation when the door slammed open. 

Orochimaru stood in the doorway. He glanced at her, briefly, before dismissing her entirely. 

Minori’s Sharingan had activated the moment the door opened; as Orochimaru stepped into the room, he flung himself out of bed and ran for the window. Orochimaru snatched him out of the air, grabbing him by the back of his shirt and slamming him down on the bed. Heiwa shot to her feet, although she wasn’t sure what she was going to do—she couldn’t exactly take on Orochimaru by herself. 

Minori lashed out, kicking backwards in a vain attempt to hit Orochimaru. Orochimaru didn’t even bother avoiding Minori’s flailing arms and legs, just stood there, pinning Minori to the bed with one hand. 

Heiwa crept towards the call button.

“Are you quite done?” Orochimaru said, as Minori stopped flailing. 

Slowly, Minori nodded. 

The door slammed open again. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, you snake-faced bastard?” Tsunade demanded. 

Orochimaru rolled his eyes and moved his hand from Minori’s back. “He’s fine. He doesn’t need to be coddled.” 

Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose. “We aren’t coddling him. It’s called therapy, and it exists for a reason.” 

“That is all well and good. However, I fail to see how hiding from the world is helpful in any way,” Orochimaru said. “He believed that meeting me would result in additional trauma. Now he knows it will not. I fail to see the issue.” 

“It’s okay.” 

Heiwa looked over to see Minori giving them a grin. It was as wide as his grins usually were, but still didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m okay, Ba-chan,” he said. 

Tsunade’s fierce expression softened as she looked at him. “Be that as it may,” she said, and seized Orochimaru by the elbow. “You and I are going to have a long, long talk.” 

Orochimaru allowed himself to be hauled away, a long-suffering expression on his face. Heiwa checked the clock, and found that it was almost time to go. “I’ll come back tomorrow,” she promised. 

“Bring someone else with you.” 

Minori wasn’t looking at her, so she couldn’t see his face. She hesitated a moment before nodding. “Okay, I will.” 

***

Minori wasn’t entirely sure who he expected Heiwa to bring with her. Sakura, maybe, or Naruto. Maybe even Sasuke. 

Instead, Heiwa walked through the door with Hinata right behind her. 

Minori grinned at them. He hoped it didn’t look as fake as it felt. “Hi, Hei-tan! Hi, Hinata.” 

“I-I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Hinata said, as she offered him a box. “Um, hospital food isn’t always good, so I thought you might like something that tastes good.” 

The box was tied with a pink ribbon that came untied easily when he tugged on the end. He opened the box to reveal a massive cinnamon bun, easily as big as his face. “Wow! I didn’t even know they made cinnamon buns this big. Will you share it with me?” 

“I brought forks,” Heiwa said. 

“Always prepared, Hei-tan,” he said. 

Heiwa distributed the forks, and the girls pulled over a small table and two chairs so that they could sit around the bed and have the cinnamon bun between the three of them. “So, Hinata,” Minori asked. “What have you been up to?” 

“Oh, um, Sasuke and I have been helping the military police. You have to be a chuunin to join them officially, but they’ve been letting us train with them and do administrative work,” Hinata said. “Sasuke has been training really hard for the next exams . . . since Heiwa passed last time.” 

“Hei-tan, you passed?” Minori held up a hand for a high-five. Heiwa rolled her eyes, but returned the high five. “That’s amazing, wow!” 

“It isn’t that amazing. I didn’t pass on my first exam, like you and Naruto.” 

Minori tried to muster some excitement at her words. After everything, passing the chuunin exam seemed so . . . trivial. “I passed?” 

Heiwa nodded. “Your performance was deemed chuunin level. You, Naruto, Rock Lee, and Gaara from Suna all passed that exam. Naruto and Gaara fought in the finals. Sakura, Neji, Shikamaru and I all passed the next exam,” she said. 

“Wow, Shikamaru passed?” 

“Barely,” she said. “He fought Temari. It lasted for hours, and in the end he forfeited, claiming he didn’t have enough chakra to finish the match. We didn’t manage to finish the quarterfinals in one day because of him.” 

Minori forced a laugh. “Typical Shikamaru! Tell me what else happened. Who did you fight, Hei-tan?” 

With both Heiwa and Hinata talking, he didn’t really have to contribute to the conversation. He smiled and nodded at the right places, watching as Heiwa and Hinata gradually relaxed over the length of the conversation. When he smiled, they smiled. When he laughed, they joined in. By the time visiting hours ended, both of them seemed completely at ease. 

“Bring someone else next time!” he called as Heiwa left. 

The next day, Heiwa returned with Sakura, who brought cakes from one of the tea shops she liked to visit. She cried and hugged him, and although being constrained by her arms made him shudder, he smiled and returned the hug. It made her happy. 

Sakura told him about the last chuunin exam and the work she had been doing on seals with Itachi and Narumi, and he smiled and laughed and asked questions at all the right moments, until the last traces of wariness and sadness had vanished from her eyes. 

The next day, Heiwa brought Ino, who made a fuss over his appearance and brought with her a whole purse full of beauty products. He let her do his hair and paint his nails, which set her at ease. Before too long, she was sharing all the gossip from the past six months and complaining about her team. Minori laughed and joined in the gossip and made sympathetic or teasing comments at the right moments, until Ino no longer looked angry and sad when she looked at his thin wrists and gaunt cheeks. 

Shikamaru brought a shogi board. He was one of the hardest to set at ease, but after enough games he was almost completely relaxed in Minori’s presence. Kiba tried to sneak in Akamaru, but was swiftly removed by the nurses. Still, Minori was confident that he’d eased Kiba’s worries in the brief time he’d been there. Sai gave him a drawing of some flowers, and Shino brought him some real flowers. Minori thanked them with a smile, which seemed to set Shino at ease, although it was hard to tell with Sai. 

Naruto was the last one to come by. Heiwa dropped him off at the door, but then left so they could talk alone. “I wanted to go after you, ya know!” Naruto blurted. “When the adults didn’t find you I asked if there was anything I could do to help, but they said there wasn’t anything I could do.” 

He clenched his fists and stared at the floor. “I was so . . . useless. You were in trouble and I couldn’t do anything.” 

Minori grinned and flashed him the victory sign. “Don’t worry, Nakkun! I’m such an awesome ninja I don’t need anyone to save me.” 

After a moment, Naruto returned the grin. The anger Minori had seen in his eyes was slowly beginning to fade. “Yeah, you are. We both made chuunin on the first try, after all! You’ve gotta hurry up and get out of here so we can go on missions again. Team Seven is officially a chuunin squad now.” 

He held out a fist, and Minori bumped his against it. 

When Naruto left, at the end of visiting hours, he was grinning happily. Minori smiled until the door closed, and fell to pieces in private. 

With the help of the food and supplements from the hospital and the food his friends brought from outside, his weight slowly increased until he no longer felt like he was looking at a stranger when he looked in the mirror. He went to his physical therapy appointments, and regularly met with one of the Yamanaka—not Inoichi, since Minori’s friendship with Ino was deemed a conflict of interest, but a young woman who smiled at him both before and after she invaded his mind and gently ripped down his barriers. 

He was in the hospital for two months, and in that time didn’t see his parents once, outside of their initial attempts at visiting. He thought, occasionally, of telling Heiwa to bring them by, but the words always caught in his throat. Imagining them walking through that door made his heart pound in his chest like it was going to burst. 

Sometimes he thought he saw blood running down his hands, dripping onto the white tile of the floor, but then he blinked and the only red he saw was the delicate flowers Ino had painted on his nails. 

Two months later, he was released. His parents had signed the release forms, although he hadn’t seen them. They had left him a note, to tell him that they loved him and that if he didn’t feel comfortable heading home, he was welcome to stay with Narumi. 

Minori dressed in the clothes his parents had brought for him, still a little baggy even now, and left the hospital by way of the window, to avoid anyone who might be waiting for him. He walked through the village alone, flinching away whenever someone walked too close to him. The crowds felt like they were pressing in on him, squeezing the life out of him. Halfway home, he ducked into an alley and took to the rooftops, racing through the village with the aid of shunshin, not stopping until he reached the edge of the forest. 

He walked the rest of the way to his house and slid open the door. “Daddy, Papa, I’m home,” he called. 

A crash came from the kitchen for a moment, Minori’s breath quickened as he remembered blood and pain. He forced himself to be calm. 

Obito’s head poked out from the kitchen. Minori grinned at him and ignored the pounding of his heart, the voice in his head telling him to run away.

Obito scrubbed at his eyes with one hand and gave Minori a shaky smile. “Welcome home.” 

Minori removed his shoes and stepped into the living room. Obito stepped into the living room as well and spread his arms wide. 

His heart pounded in his ears as he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Obito. Obito’s arms wrapped around him, closing him in, trapping him there. Minori kept his breath steady, and didn’t run away. 

Obito kissed his forehead; Minori restrained a flinch. “I’m so glad you’re home,” Obito said. “You’re grounded until you’re twenty.” 

Minori made himself laugh, and tried to remember how he acted around his parents. “That’s silly,” he said, although it felt like someone else was speaking, and he was watching from very far away. “I’d be a chuunin forever!” 

“Exactly,” Obito declared. “No dangerous missions you, ever. D-ranks for the rest of your life.” 

“Papa, no!” Minori complained. 

Obito ruffled his hair and finally, finally let him go. “I was making dinner. Daddy’s busy training our teams, but he’ll be back soon.” Obito went back to the kitchen. 

Minori looked for a place to sit, and found himself staring at the kitchen table. He ran his hands over the surface, but there were no marks, no stains, nothing to show he had ever been pinned to its surface. 

“Minori?” 

Minori jerked away from the table. “What?” 

“I asked if you felt up to joining in on training,” Obito said. 

“Oh, yeah, sure!” Minori said. “I feel like I’ve been resting forever.” 

He felt antsy, restless, like he needed to run and never stop. He stepped towards the door, only to freeze as it opened. Kakashi stepped through, trapping Minori between him and Obito. 

“I’m home,” Kakashi said as he removed his shoes. He paused, for a moment, as he noticed Minori standing by the table. 

Kakashi smiled. Somehow, Minori managed to return it. “Welcome home,” he said. 

He hoped Kakashi didn’t notice that his hands were shaking. 

Kakashi stepped closer and laid a hand on his head. “Mah, Micchan,” he said, gently scolding. “You don’t have to do everything I did, you know.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Madara Uchiha,” Kakashi said. “I met him, too.” 

His heart pounded in his ears. He said something, maybe, and Kakashi responded, but he couldn’t hear anything beyond the rush of his own blood. 

When he came back to himself, he was sitting at the table, mechanically eating cake. Kakashi was looking at him knowingly. The cake tasted like ashes. 

Stomach churning, Minori pushed the cake away. “I’m full,” he announced. “I’ve had so much cake recently, I’ll explode if I eat anymore!” 

“It’ll still be here in the morning, if you want more,” Obito said as he removed the place. “Kakashi, your turn to do the dishes.” 

Kakashi sighed, but went to the kitchen. The rushing water was soothing; in his nightmares, they had never done the dishes. 

Minori couldn’t bear to look at the table anymore, at this room he had seen so often stained with blood. 

“I’m exhausted. Night, Daddy. Night, Papa.” 

Obito bent down and kissed his forehead. “Goodnight, Minori. Sleep tight.” 

Minori kissed his cheek and went to get ready for bed, like it was any other night. His room hadn’t changed at all since he had been gone. His bedspread, covered in cartoonish shuriken and kunai, was still the same. His clothes still hung in the closet. A novel sat on his desk, bookmarked somewhere in the middle. Minori no longer remembered what it was about. 

He went to bed, and dreamed of blood and pain. 

He woke up, screaming, to his parents bursting through his door, Kakashi armed with a kunai and Obito with his tanto. Minori scrambled for a weapon, for anything, and grabbed the kunai under his pillow. He hurled it towards them, dropped to the ground, and rolled under the bed. It wouldn’t keep him safe—it never kept him safe—but it would take them more effort to reach him if he curled up in the very back corner, and he could stab their hands if they tried to grab him. 

He curled his fingers around a kunai and waited. 

He heard whispers and footsteps, but no one approached the bed. 

The door closed; Minori dared to reach up and pull a blanket under the bed. He knew, objectively, that he had nothing to worry about, but that did nothing to quell the fear racing through him. 

The door opened. “Hey, Minori,” Naruto whispered. “Can I come in?” 

Minori wet his lips. “Yeah,” he whispered. “Yeah, okay.” 

Naruto walked in and peeked under the bed. Minori’s hand clenched around the kunai before he forced himself to relax. “Wanna make a blanket fort?” 

Minori nodded, but didn’t move from under the bed as Naruto bustled around, setting up pillows and draping blankets under the bed. When he was finished, Naruto crawled under the bed, novel held in his hand. 

“Uh, Heiwa said you like reading and stuff,” he said. He pressed a seal-light to the underside of the bed and opened the book to the bookmark. 

“Start from the beginning.” 

Naruto flipped to the very first page, cleared his throat, and began to read. He stumbled a bit at first, not used to reading aloud. 

Minori let the words wash over him until he was almost asleep, and Naruto kept getting interrupted by his own yawns. “Hey, Nakkun?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Can you make seals that can keep sound from getting out?” 

“I dunno, I’ve never tried. I’ll figure it out, though.” 

“You mean it?” 

“Course. We’re friends after all.” 

Minori burrowed into his blanket. “Thanks, Nakkun.” 

“No problem.” The seal-light faded as Naruto deactivated it, and Naruto settled down to sleep beside him. “Night, Minori.” 

“Goodnight.” 

***

The next day, Minori was summoned to the Hokage’s office. He took the roofs to the administration building, avoiding the crowded streets below. He skipped the main entrance, instead hopping through a window on the top floor with a jaunty wave to the ANBU watching him. The secretary at the door waved him through, but he waited a moment to gather himself before entering the office. 

Sakumo smiled as he walked in. “Minori. I apologize for not visiting you at the hospital.” 

“It’s okay, Jii-chan,” Minori said. 

Sakumo stood and walked around the desk until he stood in front of Minori. He put his hands on his shoulders and looked down at him proudly. Minori didn’t flinch, didn’t tremble, didn’t pull away. “You’ve grown so much,” he murmured, before stepping away. He went back around to his desk and pulled out a green flak jacket. “You’ve more than earned this.” 

Minori shrugged into the flak jacket and zipped it up. “Thank you, Jii-chan.” 

“You’ve also earned this.” Sakumo reached into the desk again, and this time pulled out a sword, longer than Obito’s tanto but still smaller than a full sword. Minori unsheathed the sword, and found it made of the same chakra metal as Obito’s tanto. 

“Jii-chan, this is . . .” 

“Your very own chakra blade,” Sakumo said. “I can teach you how to use it, or Obito. Or, if you prefer, I can introduce you to some other individuals in the village who can teach you.” 

“Daddy can teach me, that’s fine,” Minori ran a finger along the blade. When he channeled chakra into it, it shone white. He whipped it through the air experimentally just to see the streak of white made by the blade. 

“I’m sure your team is waiting for you.” Sakumo sighed and looked at the towers of paperwork on his desk. “And, unfortunately, my work is waiting for me. Have fun training.” 

Minori saluted playfully. “Yes sir, Hokage-sama, sir!” 

“Minori,” Sakumo called, just as Minori had turned to go. “I mean it. Don’t push yourself too hard. Just having you home is enough.” 

Minori turned and smiled at him. “Don’t worry, Jii-chan. I’m fine.” 

Maybe if he said it enough, it would be true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving! You get an early update to celebrate. Thanks for reading, and thanks for all your wonderful reviews! 
> 
> Also, a bit of an organizational change: all of the shorts are now contained in a single work, metachronism, so any future shorts will be added there.
> 
> And another note: [fanart!](https://maislinnk.tumblr.com/post/189355887527/inspired-by-anachronism)


	43. Chapter 43

After his meeting with the Hokage, Minori started training with his team again. Sakura and Naruto kept shooting grins at him the whole time, clearly pleased to have him back with them. Even Kakashi kept ruffling his hair. 

While Naruto and Sakura took turns sparring with each other and with Kakashi, Minori worked on building up his strength and getting his body back into peak condition, as well as practicing with his naginata and wakizashi. After training, they went on small C-ranks around the village, mostly couriering important information or packages from the Hokage’s office to the hospital or the Military Police, or escorting high-profile visitors around the village. Minori smiled and laughed. He participated in team dinners, he went to his check-ups at the hospital and with the Yamanaka, he spent time with his friends. 

In the middle of spring, they were given their first mission outside the village as a chuunin squad. Just Minori, Naruto, and Sakura, with the team leader being Kakashi. The mission was simple: escort a blacksmith who was delivering a sword to a minor noble in the capital. Given the low importance of the noble, the mission was deemed to have a very low risk of combat with enemy shinobi, and a low risk of combat in general. 

That all fell apart about a day into their trip. 

It was easy to tell that bandits were following them. They pretended they didn’t notice, but when the bandits attacked, they were all prepared. Sakura activated a barrier around the client and guarded him, while Kakashi used Mokuton to quickly restrain the bandits, and Naruto and Minori engaged the ones that escaped him. Minori had just taken down the last of the bandits attacking him when Kakashi yelled his name. 

In an instant, Minori found himself on the other side of the road, Kakashi standing where he had been, exchanging blows with a missing-nin. He was wearing a headband, but from where he was standing Minori could only tell that there was a strike through it, not the village symbol. 

He sensed motion behind him and whirled around, bringing his wakizashi up in time to block a blow from a sword. The man—a missing-nin from Kusa, he could see now—sneered at him. Minori ducked under another blow, thrusting the wakizashi at the man’s stomach. The man leapt back and swung his sword again. He clearly wasn’t an expert at the weapon, and it was easy for Minori to bat the sword away with the flat of his own blade. The man swore as his blade spun out of his hand, landing in the grass far away from them. Minori dashed forward, taking advantage of the man’s momentary distraction and slipping one of Naruto’s knock-out seals from his pocket as he ran. 

The man stumbled back and reached out a hand, palm facing the ground, and then snapped his hand back. A blade slid out from the underside of his arm, pointing directly at Minori’s eye. 

Silver filled his vision. 

Minori spun away from the blade, lashing out desperately with his sword. Another glint of metal, another attacker, and Minori leapt forward to attack. 

He wouldn’t let them take his eyes again. 

Someone called his name, a familiar voice that made his body thrum with fear. Minori looked around, hunting for cover, for somewhere to hide, and only found eyes staring at him from every direction. 

Naruto stepped forward, saying something, his empty hands held up. Minori looked at those hands, which he remembered reaching into his head and pulling out his eyes as Sakura had reached into his chest and pulled out his heart. 

His fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword. He took a step back, prepared to fight or flee; he didn’t know which. 

Something slapped against the back of his head, and the world faded away. 

***

When he next opened his eyes, he was staring at a canvas tarp held up with a wooden frame. He blinked, clearing the residual blurriness of sleep from his eyes, and tried to remember what had happened. 

“Oh, you’re awake,” Sakura said. 

He turned to look at her. She looked worried, so he tried to smile to set her at ease. “What happened?” 

Sakura looked away guiltily. Her fingers tugged nervously at the hem of her shirt. “You freaked out while we were fighting those missing-nin. Kakashi-sensei wrote back to the village to officially reclassify the mission as a B-rank, but decided we could continue the mission, since he doesn’t anticipate that happening again. We borrowed a wagon from that farm town, so we’ve been making better time. We’re almost at the capital now.” She took a deep breath. “Kakashi-sensei knocked you out with a seal. You’ve been asleep for a day.” 

Minori closed his eyes. 

He had to admit, it was probably for the best. Even he wasn’t sure what he would have done, looking back on it. He might have run away, but he also might have attacked one of his teammates. 

“Do you . . . want to talk?” Sakura asked tentatively. 

Minori licked his lips as he hunted for something to say. He was luckily saved by his stomach growling loudly. He forced a laugh, and after a moment, Sakura started to giggle as well. “I’ll get you some food,” she said. “It might just be ration bars, though.” 

“Please make sure they aren’t Konoha ration bars!” he called after her as she left the wagon. 

Moments later, Kakashi slipped into the wagon. Minori’s heart started to pound in his chest. Kakashi was blocking the exit, so if Minori needed to escape, he’d have to tear through the canvas and that would take time he didn’t have. 

He forced himself to be calm. This wasn’t his nightmares. 

Kakashi, instead of approaching, tossed Minori a few ration bars. “Don’t worry, they’re from Uzushio,” he said. 

Minori unwrapped one and chowed down. Uzushio rations tasted kind of like fish and miso, a vast improvement over Konoha ration bars. “I don’t know why Konoha rations taste so bad,” he said. 

“They’ve always tasted like that. You’ll get used to it,” Kakashi said. 

Minori ate his way through the rations. Kakashi said nothing for a long time, waiting until MInori had finished. “What happened?” 

Minori looked at his hands. “Sorry, sensei,” he said. “I panicked when I saw the—the blade headed towards my eye.” 

Slowly, Kakashi approached and laid a hand on Minori’s head, giving him plenty of time to move away. “You’re going to talk to Yamanaka-san as soon as we get back,” he said softly. Minori nodded. 

Kakashi never coddled him on missions, but now he knelt down besides Minori and pulled him into a hug, loose enough that Minori could have easily pulled away. “You’ll be okay, Micchan,” he said. “It might take a while, but you’ll get there. For now, rest here.” 

Kakashi got up and left, only to pause briefly at the entrance. “I love you, Micchan.” 

“Love you too, Daddy.” 

With that, Kakashi left, and Minori was alone. He laid down and stared at the roof of the wagon. He couldn’t fall asleep out here, not when he didn’t have the noise-cancelling seals Naruto had made for him, so he would stay awake. 

***

Naruto hadn’t expected their first mission outside the village as chuunin would end up being this much of a disaster. Minori had seemed fine during training, even if he’d been a little weird sometimes. He wondered, guiltily, if he should have told Kakashi about the noise-cancelling seals Minori had asked for. Naruto hadn’t thought it was that big a deal, just a favor for a friend, but maybe it was. 

He glanced over at Kakashi, who had just left the cart and taken up position on the other side of it. Sakura was sitting up on the cart with the blacksmith. As the only one with a civilian family, Sakura most frequently served as the public face of their team when dealing with clients. They were a lot more relaxed when faced with someone who could talk about ‘normal’ things than with, say, Kakashi, who would just stare ominously into the distance and make them nervous, or Naruto, who tended to scare them by rambling about weird fuinjutsu things. Minori tended to irritate them, but Minori wasn’t feeling well anyways. 

Naruto wanted to help him, but he didn’t know how. This wasn’t an enemy he could punch. 

He tried to think of some way he could help Minori the whole trip to the Capital, but couldn’t think of anything. Minori was smiling again, and didn’t seem to be bothered by what had happened, but Naruto couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. 

Maybe he would ask Narumi about it once they were home. Narumi always knew what to do. 

Before that, however, they had to turn in their mission reports. Kakashi vanished as soon as they returned to the village, leaving Naruto alone with Sakura and Minori. 

"Wanna grab something to eat?" Naruto suggested. 

"At the tea shop near Ino's flower shop?" Sakura suggested. 

Naruto elbowed her. "You just wanna go there because  _ Itachi-senpai _ might be there." 

Sakura blushed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Don't be ridiculous. He might not even be in the village right now." 

"Yeah, but he could be," Naruto said. 

"Let's just go to the tea shop," Sakura said. 

Naruto took a few steps before realizing that Minori wasn't with them. "You coming? We can go somewhere else if you want." 

Minori waved his hands. "No, I'll catch up with you in a bit! I wanted to ask Jii-chan about something." 

"Oh. Okay, if you're sure," Naruto said, exchanging a glance with Sakura. 

Minori gave them one last cheerful wave before running off towards the administration building. Sakura and Naruto walked off on their own, towards the tea shop they frequented. 

"Don't worry," Sakura said. "He's probably going to get advice from the Hokage. He's fought through two wars—he probably knows a lot about handling difficult situations like this." 

"Worried? Pfft, who's worried? Minori's a tough guy. I mean, you've seen how hard he trains!" 

Sakura glared at him. "You know what I meant. Training isn't the only measure of strength. Minori is a really gentle person at heart." 

"Sakura, we beat each other up on a regular basis. We beat people up for a living," Naruto said. 

"That's different and you know it." 

Naruto groaned. “Yeah, I know, I know. I don’t know what to do about it, though.” 

They walked in silence for a few minutes before a high-pitched yell split the air. “Saaaaakura! Naaaaaaruto!” 

Sakura and Naruto both turned to find Ino sitting at a table outside a cafe, Choji snacking on cake and Shikamaru napping on the table next to her. Ino waved at them enthusiastically. “Over here! Come sit with us. Where’s Minori? I haven’t talked to him in forever, and I wanted to tell him about a new accessory store that opened up!” 

“He said he was gonna go talk to the old man,” Naruto said. 

“Our mission didn’t go very well,” Sakura said. 

Shikamaru yawned and propped his head up on one hand. “Figured it wouldn’t.” 

“What d’you mean?” Naruto asked. 

Shikamaru shrugged and looked at Ino, who took over the conversation. “Come on, Naruto, don’t be dense. No one recovers  _ that  _ quickly from a traumatic experience. He was gone for six months. Who knows what that wackjob did to him! I tried to get Inomi to tell me something so I could help, but doctor-patient confidentiality. You know how it is.” Ino sighed irritably, as if she knew how it was and didn’t like it one bit. 

“Who’s Inomi?” Naruto asked. 

Ino waved a hand. “Oh, one of my cousins. She’s Minori’s therapist. I heard Daddy say they might try sending him to someone else though. Our patients are almost always adults, so most of them aren’t used to working with kids. Daddy is, but he’s not allowed to work with Minori because he’s my friend, so it would be a conflict of interest.” 

“Huh. I didn’t know all that stuff was so complicated,” Naruto said. “Can’t you just, I dunno, use your mind jutsu to go into his head and see what’s wrong?” 

“As if! It’s not that easy,” Ino scoffed. “Really, I can’t believe you got the highest grades in our year.” 

Naruto scowled at her and swiped a bite of her cake in revenge. “Shut up! I’m only trying to figure out how to help Minori. If it’s not that easy, what do you do?” 

“Lots of things,” Ino said. “I’m not really that interested in that kind of thing, though. You’d be better off asking Daddy. He knows all kinds of things about psychiatry and psychology. He might be at the shop right now, if you wanted to talk to him.” 

Naruto nodded without really thinking about it. He had thought that they had learned a lot in the Academy, but now he was learning that there was so much he didn’t know, so many things he didn’t know how to do. He could save Minori from a guy coming at him with a kunai or a jutsu, but he couldn’t even help Minori with one measly nightmare. 

Feeling everyone else’s eyes on him, he stood. Ino’s family owned a flower shop just up the street, so he jabbed a thumb in that direction. “I’m gonna go see if he’s there. If Minori gets back before I do, just make up some excuse.” 

Sakura nodded. “I’ll tell him that Shishou wanted you.” 

“Yeah, that works. Thanks!” 

“If he’s not there, he might be at the hospital!” Ino called as Naruto took off down the street. 

Naruto was tired of being helpless against everything Minori was dealing with. Maybe he couldn’t fight Minori’s demons with a simple jutsu, but there had to be something he could do. 

He’d never actually been to Ino’s flower shop, so it was with some hesitance that he pushed open the door and stepped inside. “Hello? Ino’s dad?” 

A blonde man stepped into the shop from a back room, wiping his dirty hands on an apron. “Ah, Narumi-san’s nephew. How can I help you?” 

“Uh,” Naruto said, a little distracted by all the plants in the shop. It was even more colorful than the small garden he and Narumi tended together. “Ino said you know a lot about psychology and stuff, and that maybe you knew how I could help Minori feel better?” 

Ino’s dad nodded seriously, the smile falling from his face as if a switch had been flipped. “Of course. Let’s talk in the back—I’ll put on some tea for us.” 

Naruto stepped into the back room while Inoichi flipped the sign to ‘closed.’ Part of him was a little nervous from Inoichi’s serious demeanor, but the rest of him was anxious to find out what Inoichi could tell him. 

Ino’s dad fetched a small plate of cookies while the tea steeped, and poured two cups once it was ready. Naruto didn’t really like tea, even though Narumi and Sakumo were always drinking it, but he figured it was probably rude to refuse. 

“Minori has been through a very difficult experience,” Ino’s dad said. “It will take time for him to recover from it—and he might never recover from it fully. People react to trauma in different ways, and only time will tell how Minori will ultimately react. As his friend, the best thing you can do is be there for him if he needs you. But remember to take care of yourself, of course, and talk to someone if you feel overwhelmed.” 

“But that’s not good enough!” Naruto exclaimed, shooting to his feet so abruptly he nearly knocked over their tea cups. “I want to know how to help him. Doesn’t your mind transfer thing let you know what’s wrong with someone?” 

Ino’s dad took a sip of his tea. “Even with the mind transfer jutsu, it’s difficult to know exactly what someone is thinking and feeling. The mind is a complicated thing. And, of course, I haven’t entered Minori’s mind, nor would I tell you what I had learned there if I had. That would be a breach of his privacy. The best way for you to learn what’s bothering Minori is for him to tell you himself. And that might take some time. Just be patient with him.” 

Naruto scowled down at his tea. He hated being patient. But he would do his best, for his friend. 

“In the meantime,” Ino’s dad said, standing and heading to the back of the room, where a small bookshelf was crammed in the corner next to the kitchenette. “I have a book you can read. Feel free to ask me any questions.” 

Ino’s dad returned to the table and dropped a book on the table. Naruto stared at it in dismay; it was easily as big as all of his Academy textbooks combined. 

_ An Introduction to Basic Psychology,  _ the title read. If this was an introduction to the basics, Naruto hated to think what a more in-depth book would look like. Just the sight of it made him grimace; Naruto hated studying. 

But more than studying, he hated not being able to help his friends, so he sucked it up and tucked the book under his arms. “Thanks, Ino’s dad! I’m gonna come back and ask you about everything I don’t understand, so you better be ready!” 

“It’s Inoichi!” Ino’s dad called as the door slammed shut behind Naruto. 

Naruto wasn’t about to haul a massive textbook to the cafe—Ino would definitely make fun of him for that—so instead, he headed home. Sakura would make excuses, and it wasn’t like he couldn’t see the others anytime he wanted. He’d probably see Minori in a few hours; maybe the book would have something that would help Naruto understand him. Although Naruto was beginning to suspect he’d have to break out the dictionary to get anywhere. 

***

Minori’s footsteps echoed loudly in the hallways of the administrative office. Most people were out for lunch—Minori had only been able to get in to see Sakumo on such short notice because it was his lunch break. 

Their meeting hadn’t been long, but it had been fruitful, and now Minori held a very important piece of paper in his hands. 

_ Leave of Absence, _ it read across the top. 

It was a relief, on one hand. He wanted—needed—a break. If the mission had gone just a little bit worse, he could have hurt his teammates, and if that happened Minori knew he wouldn’t be able to bear it. 

On the other hand, now he had to explain this to them. 

A wave of humidity hit him as he left the administrative building. The noise of the Academy students playing and training in the yard washed over him. Without really thinking, he stepped towards the gates and stopped there. 

Minori took one look at the bustling street and knew one thing without a doubt. 

He didn’t want to be there anymore. 

His team was waiting for him at the tea shop, but Minori ran in the opposite direction, towards the massive walls that stretched towards the sky. He didn’t stop, even when he reached the walls. His foot hit the wall with a loud thud and stuck there for a split-second as he propelled himself forward. He raced up the wall and hurtled over the edge, stopping only when he collided with the ledge on the other side of the walkway on top of the wall. He leaned against it, staring out at the sea of trees before him. 

“Hey! You aren’t authorized to be up here!” 

Minori jerked away from the ledge and turned to find a familiar figure walking towards him. “Oh, Sakkun.” 

Sasuke scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. He was wearing an armband that declared him a ‘Junior Officer.’ 

“You’re not allowed up here if you’re not on guard duty,” Sasuke said. “And don’t call me that.” 

“Sorry. I’ll go.” 

Sasuke huffed and leaned against the wall. “I’m seven minutes ahead of schedule. You can stay until then.” 

“Thanks,” Minori said, leaning against the wall beside him. 

They stood in silence for a while. For all that their teams trained together and Sasuke had helped him with the naginata, they didn’t talk much outside of training. Minori was pretty sure the last real conversation they’d had, unrelated to training, was on the first day at the Academy, before Sasuke’s father had forbidden Sasuke from speaking to him. Both bored with the introductory lecture and exercises, they’d spent the entire day chatting, even when Iruka had scolded them. Minori had gone home, talking endlessly about his new best friend, only for Sasuke to tell him the next day, “My father said I’m not allowed to talk to you.” 

Naruto had joined their class only a couple days later, so Minori hadn’t thought of that in years. 

“Remember when we met at the Academy?” Minori asked. Sasuke nodded. “It seems silly now, but I was so sure we were going to be best friends. I was so mad when you rejected me!” 

“You make it sound like something completely different,” Sasuke grumbled. “And it wasn’t my idea. You’re annoying, but you’re a good shinobi.” 

Minori’s breath left him in a sigh. “A good shinobi, huh?” He traced his fingers along a line in the wall. “Hey, Sakkun, what made you want to join the military police?” 

“To protect the village,” Sasuke said. “Like my father. And like Itachi.” 

“Itachi-senpai, huh?” Minori gazed into the distance. “Yeah, he’s cool. His shurikenjutsu is incredible.” 

Sasuke nodded, a proud smile on his face. “It is. Nii-san is great at everything. Everyone in the clan says he’s the greatest prodigy of our generation.” 

Minori didn’t spend much time with Itachi; he’d spent more time with Shisui in that month training for the exams than he’d ever spent with Itachi. But he still knew a lot about him. “Itachi-senpai is super amazing at developing seals. And he’s really nice . . .” Minori trailed off, trying to recall the details of a conversation he’d had with Itachi some time ago, when they’d both been at Naruto’s house at the same time. 

Sasuke shot him a horrified look. “Do you have a  _ crush  _ on my  _ brother _ ?” 

“What? No!” Minori exclaimed. “Sacchan likes him.” 

“Ugh, Sakura? That’s even worse.” 

Minori couldn’t help but laugh at Sasuke’s disgruntled expression. “How is that worse?” 

“At least you’re basically an Uchiha,” Sasuke said. “Her hair is  _ pink _ .” 

“Don’t let my papa hear you say that,” Minori warned, still giggling. 

“The elders wanted to make you join the clan. After they heard you got your Sharingan. Mom and Itachi stopped them,” Sasuke said. 

“Really? I didn’t know that.” Minori tapped his fingers restlessly against the wall. “Papa doesn’t get along with the elders at all.” 

Sasuke shrugged one shoulder. “Who does? They’re always sticking their noses in your business and telling you what to do. You should do what you want to do, not what a bunch of adults tell you. Adults don’t know everything.” 

“What I want to do, huh?” Minori looked over the trees, stretching out as far as the eye could see. He’d never left the Land of Fire before, not even for a mission. 

“Don’t tell me if you’re planning to run,” Sasuke said. “That’s desertion. I’d have to report you.” 

“Even with this?” Minori said, handing over the leave of absence form. 

Sasuke read the form thoroughly and then tucked it into his pocket. “You can leave if you have that. You just have to clear it with the gate guards.” He turned around and headed down the wall. “Come on. I’ll take you.” 

Minori scrambled after Sasuke, trailing in his wake as he led the way to the front gate. They made good time; with Sasuke in his police uniform, even the ninja gave them a wide berth. 

“Izumo. Kotetsu.” 

The two guards grinned as the noticed Sasuke. “Well, well. Uchiha Junior. What can we do for you?” 

“He’s leaving. Process his papers,” Sasuke ordered. 

“You’re so much nicer when your little girlfriend is around,” Kotetsu sighed as Izumo pulled out some forms. “I’ll need your ID number.” 

Sasuke handed over the leave of absence form. “It’s right there.” 

“Oh, that makes it easier.” Kotetsu began to fill out the form. “Let me guess, the Capital?” 

Minori hadn’t actually had a destination in mind, but he smiled and nodded. The Capital was as good a place as any, at least for a first stop. Maybe he could visit Yuzuki while he was there. “Yep!” 

“Knew it.” Kotetsu filled out the form and stamped it firmly before handing it to Izumo, who filed it away. “You’re all set. Good luck!” 

Sasuke escorted him to the gates. He reached into his pocket and handed Minori a small pouch without a word. Curiously, Minori looked inside and found a decently sized stash of ryo. 

Sasuke glowered into the distance. “You can pay me back later.” 

Minori tried to hand it back. “I don’t need it, Sakkun, I just got paid.” 

“Take it. Heiwa will murder me if I let you go off unprepared.” Sasuke stuffed his hands into his pockets. “You . . . be careful. Or whatever.” 

Minori saluted. “Sir, yes, sir!” Sasuke nodded sharply and turned to go, but Minori reached out and grabbed hold of him. “Wait! One more thing. Can I borrow your back?” 

“Make it quick. I have work to do.” 

Minori managed to find a spare scroll, one of the ones he kept just in case Naruto or Sakura needed it, and a pen. He quickly jotted out a message against Sasuke’s back, and then rolled up the scroll and handed it to Sasuke. “Can you give that to my parents? There’s no rush, though.” 

Sasuke nodded. “I’ll deliver it once I’m done with work tonight.” 

“Thanks.” Minori gave him one last grin before turning and staring down the dirt road that led out of Konoha. “I’m off! Don’t miss me too much, Sakkun!” 

And so, with no one but Sasuke to see him off, Minori made his way to the Capital. 

***

Naruto was halfway through the first chapter of the book—and he really hoped Inoichi didn’t mind that he’d marked up everything he didn’t understand, because the book looked kind of messy now—when someone knocked on the front door before sliding it open. 

“Hey, Naruto,” Obito said. “Is Minori here? He hasn’t come home for dinner yet.” 

“I haven’t seen him since we got back,” Naruto said. “He said he was gonna talk to Sakumo-jiji. Maybe he’s still with him?” 

Obito shook his head. “Kakashi already checked there, and at Sakumo’s house. He went to the training ground to see if Minori was there.” 

Narumi stepped out from the back of the house. “You can’t find Minori?” 

Obito ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. Normally I wouldn’t worry, I mean, he’s spent the night at a training ground before, but with what happened . . .” 

Narumi nodded and headed for the door, stopping to put on his shoes. “I’ll help look for him. Naruto, stay here in case he comes back. There’s a message scroll in my office, use it to send me a message.” 

“I will,” Naruto said as the two of them left the house, discussing where they had checked and where they still had to check. 

After that, concentrating on the book was impossible. Naruto read the next sentence three times without absorbing anything before giving up and shoving it away. He’d summon a shadow clone to read it, but he knew the clone would just goof off. He wanted to train, but he couldn’t leave the house in case Minori came by. 

Naruto settled for doing basic exercises in the living room, and was in the middle of a set of push-ups when the door opened and Sasuke stepped through, a scowl on his face. “Naruto. Where are Kakashi and Obito?” 

“They went to look for Minori,” Naruto said. “No one can find him, I guess. Obito said they were gonna go to a training ground.” 

Sasuke made an irritated noise. “That means I have to find them.” 

“Hang on, I’ll send Ji-chan a note on his seal and you can wait here. Wanna snack or something?” Naruto called as he headed to Narumi’s office to leave a note on the message scroll. 

“I’ll eat at home,” Sasuke said. “My mom was expecting me after my shift. I’m already late.” 

“What did you need Kakashi and Obito for, anyways?” 

Sasuke scowled and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “I have something to give them.” 

“I can give it to them, ya know.” 

Sasuke only shrugged. He didn’t seem particularly interested in carrying on the conversation, so Naruto went back to his pushups. 

The door burst open to admit Obito, with Kakashi right behind him. “Sasuke! Have you seen Minori?”

“I did. While I was working,” Sasuke said. He held out a folded piece of paper. “He asked me to give you this once I was done with work.” 

Obito snatched it out of his hand and sank onto the couch as he read the paper, Kakashi reading over his shoulder. 

“When did you see him?” Narumi asked quietly. 

Sasuke shrugged. “Around noon. I took an early lunch.” 

“So not recently,” Narumi murmured thoughtfully. “Where did he go after you saw him? Did he say anything?” 

“He left,” Obito said. Naruto turned to look at him, and found Obito staring at the page with wide eyes. “Minori . . . left. He asked Sakumo for a leave of absence.” 

“Wait, Minori what?” Naruto demanded, reaching for the paper. Obito let the paper go without resistance. 

“Sorry for leaving without telling you,” Naruto read. “I had to . . . get out of Konoha? Tell Sakura and Naruto I’ll miss them? What the fuck is this?” Unable to bear another sentence, Naruto crumpled up the paper and hurled it at Sasuke. Sasuke leaned out of the way, the same placid expression on his face, as if it didn’t even matter to him. 

Just the sight of it pissed him off. Naruto stormed up to him and seized him by the front of his shirt. “Why didn’t you stop him?” 

“He wanted to leave,” Sasuke said. 

“So? We coulda helped him!” Naruto exclaimed, shaking him. 

“Naruto. That’s enough,” Kakashi said. 

Naruto glared into Sasuke’s eyes and stepped back. 

“Sasuke, where did Minori go?” Kakashi asked. 

“He wouldn’t say,” Sasuke said.

“Yeah, like you asked,” Naruto scoffed, falling silent at a stern look from Kakashi. 

Kakashi stood. “I’ll ask the gate guards. If he left through official channels, they might know where he went.” 

“Good luck with that,” Sasuke said, as he turned on his heel and walked out the door. Naruto looked at Kakashi, who had picked up the letter and was carefully uncrumpling it, and Obito, who was sitting on the couch and staring at his hands, before tearing after Sasuke. 

He plowed into Sasuke, knocking him to the ground and pinning him there so he couldn’t escape. “What did you mean, ‘good luck with that?’” Naruto demanded. “What do you know?” 

“The gate guards won’t tell Kakashi anything,” Sasuke said. 

“Yeah? What makes you so sure?” Naruto asked. 

“Because I made sure they wouldn’t.” 

Naruto raised his fist. “What the hell did you do? Start talking, asshole.” 

In one fluid movement, Sasuke flipped them over and then rolled off. “I’m not telling anything to you. Now scram.” 

“I’m gonna get those gate guards to tell me everything!” Naruto yelled after his retreating back. 

He just had to track them down first. 

In the end, it turned out to be easier than he expected. There weren’t that many gate guards, and there were two who were always on shift at the time Minori had left: Izumo and Kotetsu. 

Unfortunately, they were just as uncooperative as Sasuke had said they would be. 

“Sorry, Naruto, but no can do,” Izumo said. 

Naruto scowled at them. “What did that bastard Sasuke offer you, anyways? I bet I can give you something better!” 

They exchanged glances. “Well, he kinda said his cousin Shisui would owe us each a favor if we did what he asked,” Izumo said. 

“And I don’t normally make a habit of doing what snot-nosed newbie chuunin tell me to do, but Shisui owing me a favor is just too great to pass up,” Kotetsu snickered. “I’m still trying to figure out what I should make him do.” 

“Fine, I’ll get him to take back the favor,” Naruto said. “And then you’ll have to tell me!” 

He stormed off in the direction of the Hokage’s office, leaving Izumo and Kotetsu discussing their nefarious plans for Shisui. Shisui was a strong guy, but he had to have a weakness. Naruto was going to make him either take back the favor or cough up where Minori had gone, one way or another. 

***

“Heiwa.” 

Reflexively, Heiwa flung the kunai under her pillow at the window. Sasuke, perched in her window, dodged it easily. Heiwa watched him for a moment, trying to determine if it was actually an invader in disguise, but if it was, then it was a very good disguise. 

“How did you get in?” she asked. 

Sasuke shrugged on shoulder. “That old guy with a grudge against the Uchiha was at the gate, so I slipped around to the back and snuck in.” 

Heiwa nodded. His explanation made sense; Murata-san, one of the attendants to the Senju family, had always been kind to her, but he held a grudge against the Uchiha that dated back nearly to the warring clans period. “So why are you sneaking into my bedroom at one in the morning?” 

“I would’ve come earlier, but dinner ran late. Itachi was home. I knew you’d be up. You’re always reading,” he said. 

“That doesn’t answer my question. You might as well come inside, before someone notices you here.” The rest of her immediate family had already gone to sleep, but there were a few attendants and elderly aunts and uncles still roaming about. Heiwa could only imagine the rumors that would reach her mother if they saw Sasuke hanging out of her bedroom window. And she did  _ not  _ need another sex education lecture from Kogane. 

Sasuke climbed through the window, and Heiwa shut it behind him and drew the curtains. Sasuke took a seat at her desk, while she perched on her bed, facing him. “So? Why are you here?” 

“It’s about Minori,” Sasuke said. “He left the village.” 

A spike of alarm had her on her feet before she could stop herself. Sasuke gave her a judgmental look, and she sat back down again. She took a moment to collect herself and suppress the questions that wanted to burst out of her before responding. “He left. On his own?” 

“Yeah. I saw him to the gate,” Sasuke said. “He wanted to go. Had a leave of absence form and everything.” 

Heiwa turned his words over in his mind. She had thought that Minori had been recovering, but evidently something had still been bothering him. There was no way to tell exactly what it was without asking him, however. “Where did he go?” 

“No idea,” Sasuke said. 

Heiwa narrowed her eyes at him. “Yes, you do.” 

He shrugged. “Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.” 

Heiwa considered him for a moment. “Because Minori doesn’t want you to tell anyone.” Again, Sasuke shrugged. 

“You realize he could be in danger,” Heiwa said. 

“He can take care of himself,” Sasuke said. 

Heiwa debated whether punching him in the face was worth potentially waking up the rest of the household. 

“I didn’t just send him off. I gave him money,” Sasuke said. 

Now that was something that made her wonder if he was an imposter all over again. “You don’t even like Minori. Why are you helping him?” 

“You’d be pissed at me if I sent him off without helping,” Sasuke said. “I’ve heard stories about your mom. I don’t need to experience that for myself.” 

Heiwa crossed her arms over her chest. “That still doesn’t explain why you’re telling me this.” 

“Because otherwise, you might find some way to figure out where he went, and then you’d tell Kakashi and Obito, and then they’d bring him back,” Sasuke said. 

Heiwa observed him for a moment, taking in his casual, relaxed stance. “You helped him because he won’t be able to annoy you from wherever he went.” 

Sasuke didn’t say a word, just stared at her with his black eyes. Usually, Sasuke’s eyes reminded her of Minori; it probably made her like Sasuke a little more than she would have otherwise. Now it only infuriated her. 

Heiwa stood and yanked open the window. “Get out,” she said. 

Sasuke went to the window and dropped one leg through. “Not going to punch me?” 

“I considered it, but you aren’t worth waking the house up,” she said. “You can wait for training tomorrow. Goodnight.” 

With that, she slammed the window shut, giving Sasuke only a second to drop all the way out of the window. She drew the curtains shut again, not bothering to see if he had gone or not, and flopped onto her bed. Her stuffed animals stared at her judgmentally. 

Heiwa rolled over, shoved her face into a pillow, and screamed. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More [fanart](https://maislinnk.tumblr.com/post/189437482202/inspired-by-anachronism)!


	44. Chapter 44

The capital was both bigger and noisier than Minori had expected. He had thought that it would be about the same size as Konoha, but the Daimyo’s palace in the center of the city was even farther away from the entrance to the city than the Hokage Monument was to the gates of Konoha. The paved streets were crammed full of carriages and bicycles and trams and, once, an actual car, something he’d only seen in movies before. People walked along the sides of the roads, carrying shopping bags and chatting with friends and heading to work. 

All of them gave Minori a wide berth. He didn’t mind, at first; it meant that he didn’t have to pay attention to where he was going, leaving him free to gape at the bustle of the city. Eventually, however, it started to wear on him. The way that everyone nervously eyed his weapon pouches. The way that his headband earned him fearful glances. The way that people tugged their children away from him. It felt as if every eye in the city was on him. 

He tried his best to ignore the way people shied away from him as he wandered down the street, peering into shop windows and nearly jumping out of his skin when an automobile rattled down the street. The street was lined with stalls selling food and newspapers, their proprietors calling out to anyone who got within shouting distance. 

Eventually, a shout drew his attention. “Extra! Extra! Daimyo seeks new member for the Twelve Guardians! Interested parties to apply at the palace! Ninja must be at least chuunin to be eligible to apply! Extra!” 

Minori looked around and saw a boy standing on a box, waving a flyer in the air. A few shinobi had gathered around him, and a couple of them handed him a few coins in exchange for a flyer before wandering off again. 

The Daimyo needed to fill the ranks of the Guardians—that must have been why the gate guards in Konoha had assumed he was going to Konoha. There had to be dozens of people vying for the position. 

Minori waited until the last of the shinobi had wandered off, and then ran up before anyone else could appear. “You said you only have to be a chuunin, right?” 

“All the information’s on the flyer. That’s one hundred ryo!” the boy said, holding the flyers above his head. 

“One hundred ryo? For a flyer? Jeez, the Capital’s expensive. Can’t you give me a discount?” Minori gave him a pleading look. 

The boy shook his head and held out his hand. “No exceptions! Or I’ll get in trouble.” 

“Okay, okay.” Minori handed over the money, and received a single piece of paper in exchange. The information was listed on the flyer, but it wasn’t particularly informative; all it said was to apply at the palace. “Do you know how to get there?” 

“I’ll tell ya for fifty more ryo.” 

Minori stuck out his tongue. “No thanks! I’m not that much of a sucker. I’ll find it myself.” 

The Capital was big, but the palace was huge and right in the middle of the place. It couldn’t be that hard to find it. Not to mention that it seemed like every shinobi in the capital was heading there. 

Minori finally reached the palace, nearly getting run over by three carriages and another car on his way there, and looked around for the nearest shinobi. He soon spotted two of them walking with a purpose around the side of the palace, and followed them to a small side entrance manned by two civilian guards. An administrator of some sort stood behind a small table in front of the entrance. As Minori watched, the two shinobi spoke to him, signed some papers, and then left. The moment they vanished down a street, Minori stepped forwards.

The man sighed and made a shooing motion. “No, you can’t come in, even just for a peek, and no, you can’t watch the shinobi fight each other.” 

Minori smiled sweetly up at him. “Nope! I’m here to try out for the position.” He held up his ninja identification card, and watched as the blood drained from the man’s face when he read Minori’s name. 

“Ah . . . of course, honorable grandson. My mistake,” the man said. At the title, both of the guards began to look rather interested, although they hastily adopted blank faces when Minori glanced at them. The man recovered himself enough to slide a few papers towards him. “Just sign these, and then be at this gate on Friday morning.” 

Minori glanced down at the paper the man handed to him. The paper said to be there at ten, but a small burst of chakra dispelled the illusion covering it, revealing the true time was eight. 

That gave him three days to prepare, then. Minori flipped through the papers—a basic registration form, along with a release form in case of severe injury or death, and so on—and then handed them over with a cheery smile. “Thanks, Ji-san. I’ll be here! And don’t tell anyone I was here, ‘kay? It’s a secret!” 

The man stared dumbly after him, too stunned to respond, as Minori strolled off, back into the crowds of the city. The registration had time taken less time than he had expected, leaving him with plenty of time to kill.

He needed to find somewhere to train and somewhere he could refresh his gear and find things to maintain his weapons—he hadn’t had a chance to stop at home after his mission. 

He wasn’t entirely sure where to go, but the artisanal district seemed like a good place to start. He wandered through the city, occasionally asking directions, until he found the most colorful and bustling section of town. The streets were too small and winding for most of the methods of transportation used on the main roads, but they were crammed full of people. 

What appeared to be an art gallery of some sort was open on his left, while on his right a man was selling woodblock prints to tourists from Suna. Further down, he spotted a potter and a man selling fabric arguing furiously outside their shops, unaware of the two children sneaking money from their tills. He sniffed the air, and couldn’t help but grin in satisfaction. There, underneath the scent of the dirt and grime of the city, of the paint and ink and freshly-baked bread, was the unmistakable hot metal and sweat scent associated with blacksmiths. 

He darted down the street, following the scent, and eventually found a blacksmith’s shop nestled next to a glassware shop manned by a teal-haired woman who had to be from Uzushio.  _ BLACKSMITH _ , the sign over the shop declared boldly, with no other words to elaborate. A simple sword was displayed in the window, through which he glimpsed several other weapons, including ninja gear. 

And, just down the street, an explosion of color caught Minori’s attention. He stopped, just short of entering the blacksmith shop, and wandered towards the colorful shop. It was a clothing store, he soon realized, but not like most of the clothing stores in Konoha. The stores in Konoha tended to be practical, geared mostly towards shinobi, and Minori had never bothered looking at the shops for civilians before. This explosion of color was something entirely new, and he wanted it. He wanted something bright and cheerful, to draw people’s eyes away from his still too-thin cheeks and too-hollow eyes. Something for them to look at instead of him. 

The shop was stuffed to the brim with clothing, and seemed to have no particular order to it. Minori grabbed whatever caught his eye—bright colors, fun patterns, anything that made him want to smile or laugh—without a care for what exactly he was buying. It took a few hours and all of the money Sasuke had given him until he was satisfied with his haul, but finally he was ready to return to the blacksmith shop. 

A bell rang as he pushed open the door, followed by a bellow of, “Customers!” 

Minori turned his attention to the counter as a boy shifted from where his head had been resting on his arms. He was taller than Minori, but looked to be close to his age. A cloud of dense, black curls had been pushed away from his face with a headband, and his dark brown skin was mottled with a color so pale it almost matched Minori’s. He stared when Minori walked in, but this time Minori was pretty sure it wasn’t because of his ninja gear or his appearance. 

It was probably because he was wearing chunky boots, flowery leggings, shorts with sequins sparkling along the hem, and an oversized sweater in an astoundingly bright shade of purple. 

The boy looked Minori over, and then looked Minori right in the eye. His eyes were lighter than Minori’s, a gentle, warm brown, but they were cold and wary in the face of MInori’s grin. 

“Can I help you, miss?” he said.

Minori kept his smile on. “I need to restock my kunai, shuriken, and senbon. Twenty kunai and shuriken, and fifty senbon. Supplies for blade maintenance would be good, too.” 

The boy eyed him skeptically. “You got a registration card for these?” Minori showed his card. The boy examined it, showing no sign of recognition of his name, and then slowly left his post to retrieve the items from the wall behind the counter. “What kind of blades are you talking here?” 

“A wakizashi and a naginata,” he said. “Both with chakra blades.” 

The boy dropped a box of kunai, shuriken, and senbon on the table with a bang. “Fancy stuff,” he said, eyeing Minori with a measured gaze. “For such a shrimp.” 

Minori kept grinning. “Oh, you know, I’m compensating.” 

“You watching the tryouts or something?” 

“Participating, actually,” Minori said cheerfully. 

The boy let out a short, barking laugh. “You’re kidding, right? You’re gonna get killed out there. You’re, what, ten?” 

“Thirteen, actually,” Minori said. “And I won’t know until I try!” 

“You’re crazy,” the boy said, and piled the final supplies he’d asked for on the counter. “That’ll be three thousand five hundred ryo.” 

Minori puffed out his cheeks irritably. “Jeez, blacksmith-san, you’re hurting my wallet.” The boy only shrugged, and Minori sighed and fished out his money. 

The boy carefully counted and sorted it. “I’m not actually a blacksmith, yet. Just an apprentice.” 

“Well, what’s your name then? I’m Minori.” 

Minori held his hand out over the counter, and after a moment, the boy shook it. “Kintsugi. Thank you very much for your patronage.” 

He said the last phrase in monotone, as if it had been painstakingly drilled into him, and Minori couldn’t help but laugh. “When I’m one of the Twelve Guardians, I’ll be sure to come back!” 

“You’ll never make it!” Kintsugi replied as Minori left the shop, package of supplies in hand. 

He stood there, for a moment, outside the shop. People still stared at him, but not in fear or worry or wariness. A few teenagers in similar clothing smiled at him. A child pointed at him, and her mother didn’t pull her away. No one bowed to him or tried to talk to him or asked him how he was feeling. No one knew him. 

Minori smiled and, for once, it felt almost natural. 

He drifted down the streets for a time until some delectable smells lured him over to a street stall selling okonomiyaki. The man at the stall was kind enough to direct him to a small park that allowed ninja to practice, so long as they didn’t disturb civilians or use any destructive techniques, and so after his lunch Minori headed there to pass the time running through kata and sorting his belongings. Most of the people there were civilians playing sports or performing calisthenics, but there were a few other ninja training there. Minori slipped away from them, into a secluded grove of trees. They were carefully groomed, a far cry from the massive, wild trees that surrounded the village, but they were close enough to make him feel at home.

He didn’t stop until the last gleam of light had faded from the sky and the city was lit solely by street lamps. For a while, he stared up at the sky, marveling at how few stars there were here compared to Konoha. 

“Ah,” he said to himself, as he set the butt of his naginata in the ground and leaned on the pole. “I should have found a place to stay.” 

***

Sunlight filtered through green leaves, making him blink and wince against the sudden brightness. Minori sat up, careful not to fall off the branch he’d slept in the past few nights, and stretched before sliding down the trunk and setting off to find a public bathroom to use to change into his shinobi gear. He stopped briefly in a convenience store to pick up breakfast and check the time, and then, seeing as it was close to eight already, headed directly to the gates. 

A crowd had already gathered there, and ninja stood clustered in small groups as they waited for the attendant to speak. A few civilians were also leaning against buildings and fences, observing the shinobi. It was kind of silly in Minori’s opinion, considering how tense the shinobi were. 

“So you did show. Here I thought you were making it up.” 

Minori looked up to see Kintsugi perched on a wall, halfway through an apple. “Nope, not lying,” he said cheerfully. 

Kintsugi looked doubtfully at the gathered ninja. “These guys are going to crush you,” he said. 

Minori looked them over. Most of them were unfamiliar to him, but a few of them he’d seen around. Most of them were jounin, of course, but he thought he spotted a few older chuunin in the mix as well. All of them looked to be at least twice his age, and the majority were twice his size as well. The person closest in height to him was a slender woman who was still around a foot taller than him. Some of them were from clans, but there weren’t any Uchiha or Hyuuga he could see, which was good for him. 

He glanced over to see Kintsugi staring at him. “You’ve got sticks in your hair,” the boy said helpfully. 

“Ah, thanks. I rushed over here,” he laughed, running his hands through his hair to brush out the stray twigs and leaves before twisting it up in a bun and fastening it with one of the bun coverings he’d stolen from Ino. This one was a dark purple, matching the color of his shirt. 

“I don’t see your weapons,” Kintsugi mentioned after a bit. 

“I see how it is,” Minori said, smacking his fist against the palm of his other hand. “You’re here for my blades, not to cheer me on!” 

“Cheer you on?” he said. “I barely know you. You’re just some weird ninja kid.” 

Minori grinned up at him. “And you’re just some weird blacksmith kid! But here, since you asked.” 

He slipped out one of the many small sealing scrolls tucked into the pouch on the side of his leg, and unsealed his wakizashi, safely stored in its sheath. “I don’t know the policy on carrying weapons and I didn’t want to freak out any civilians, so I sealed it away,” he explained, as he strapped the sheath to the outside of his other leg, making sure that it wouldn’t impede his movement. He drew it in a smooth motion and held it out to the other boy, hilt out and the blade facing away from them. 

Kintsugi accepted it just as easily, and set to examining it. “This is a nice blade. White’s a strange color for a chakra blade,” he noted. “You take good care of it.”

“It was a gift from my grandfather,” he said. 

Kintsugi made a small, understanding noise, and handed it back in the same way Minori had handed it over. “What about the other one?” 

Minori held his finger to his lips and made a shushing noise. “That’s a secret! I can’t give away my skills to the competition, you know.” 

“Trade secrets, huh?” Kintsugi said.

“Exactly,” Minori said. More shinobi were glancing over at him, though, clearly recognizing him, and no doubt some of them knew what to expect from him. 

By the time the attendant at the gate cleared his throat, more shinobi than he could count had gathered at the gate. “The trials will begin shortly,” he said. “Follow me to the training ground.” 

“Thanks for waiting with me, Kintsugi,” Minori said. “Cheer me on.” 

Kintsugi rolled his eyes, but his lips were quirked up in what could optimistically be taken as a smile, so Minori grinned and waved as he darted after the other shinobi. They halted, however, in the middle of a training yard. 

“We will now announce your name, and a number! They will not be repeated, so take note,” the attendant said, before rapidly listing off a series of names and numbers almost faster than he could comprehend them. He did manage to catch his name, however, as well as the number seven. 

“Lucky number seven,” he murmured under his breath. 

Once all the names had been called, those who had managed to hear their numbers each trailed after an attendant to a different training area, leaving five of their number to argue with a very smug attendant. He was, Minori mused as he followed the attendant, quite likely to get stabbed before the end of the day. 

The attendant checked them all against a list as they walked in, turning away two who had gotten their number wrong and allowing the others to enter. “This will be a simple contest of skills,” the man said, as he took a seat at the end of the room opposite the door, along with a woman who was already waiting there. “No lethal attacks are allowed, If you are knocked out, leave the building, use lethal force, or forfeit, then you are eliminated from the trials. You will continue until two are left. Begin.” 

The shinobi leapt into motion. Minori tugged up his goggles as he dove under a kick, and spun around to kick his attacker through the wall. A genjutsu settled over him, and he could have laughed—as if a genjutsu would work on a sharingan user. He allowed his attacker, the slender woman he had spotted early, to think she’d trapped him, staying purposefully still until she was within striking range, when he pulled his wakizashi and slammed the hilt into her temple. She sank to the floor, unconscious, and a man jumped up from behind her, fingers already flickering through the seals to an earth jutsu. 

Minori jumped as earth spiked through the floor, splintering the boards and sending half the shinobi in the room flying. He touched down, pushing himself off of the surging rock, and flashed forward with shunshin. The man went flying as Minori rammed the hilt of his sword into his groin, and fell to the ground, making strange whimpering noises until another shinobi knocked him out. A kunai struck him in the back of the leg, and he whirled around, senbon at the ready. 

Senbon were small enough that most shinobi tended to ignore them, and they were mainly used as a distraction, so as he let them fly he darted around, as if to attack from behind. Sure enough, the woman turned to face him, choosing to ignore the senbon even as they sank into her back. Minori dashed away again, knowing she had only a few minutes before the poison paralyzed her. It wouldn’t last more than a few hours, but that was more than enough to keep her out of the way for the duration of the fight. 

He glanced around long enough to determine that six others had fallen in addition to the four he had taken out, leaving him and four others. They were distracted, each one fighting another, and as he watched a large man punched a woman in the face, sending her soaring back into the wall. She didn’t move, and he ran for one of the other two fighters. The second fighter jumped back, waiting for an opening. Minori activated his sharingan and whistled sharply. The shinobi met his eyes and, in a heartbeat, was trapped in his genjutsu. He ran forward, and she broke free of the genjutsu, but he had still gained enough time to take her off guard. He flung senbon at her and she dove out out of the way, only for one of them to scratch her arm. 

Now, all he had to do was keep away until the poison took effect. A quick burst of shunshin sent him halfway across the room, but she followed right on his heels. He ducked under her blow and rolled away. He didn’t dare use shunshin again, not when he didn’t know how much chakra he might need for the later parts of the test, so he resorted to running and dodging until, finally, the woman’s motions slowed so much that she was unable to move. 

“Stop!” the attendant called. “The test has come to an end. Will the two remaining contestants follow me, please.” 

Minori wiped his goggles clean as he followed the attendant from the room. The other shinobi glanced down at him, but didn’t say a word. 

The attendant led them to a room where ten other shinobi were already waiting. A few of them were talking quietly to each other, but the rest were standing alone, eating snacks taken from the table in the center of the room or wiping down with towels offered by serving girls. Minori took the opportunity to clean up and get some food while the rest of the shinobi trickled in, and had been reduced to watching the others by the time the attendant finally cleared his throat. 

“You will now follow me to the training grounds. When there, line up next to each other with your opponent from the last match at your side,” he said. 

The training ground he led them to was filled with trees. When he inhaled, Minori even caught the scent of water—a pond, probably, or maybe a stream. 

“There are five flags hidden in the forest,” the attendant said. “You and your partner are to work together to capture one of these flags. The five teams that have a flag at the end of four hours or once five other teams have been incapacitated will pass to the next phase. Again, no lethal strikes, no leaving the area. You may choose to forfeit, but both you and your partner will be eliminated. You have five minutes to strategize, starting now.” 

The groups quickly split off and began talking in quiet murmurs. Minori eyed his partner, a tall man with a scar on his lip. “So, you’re that Hokage’s grandson then, huh? The one that used shunshin in the chuunin exam?” the man asked. 

Minori nodded and quickly ran through his skills. “I have weapons and the Sharingan. I can also use medical techniques, and track fairly well. What about you?” 

“Taijutsu, trapping, and scouting are my specialties,” the man said. “Can you track all these guys?” 

It would be easier if he had Naruto or Sakura and their tracking seals, but as it was, Minori simply breathed deeply and tried to pick out the scents. “I think so,” he murmured. “I might not be able to tell which one is which, but I’ll be able to tell if they’re coming for us.” 

“So the goal is to find one of these flags, grab it, and defend it,” the man said, stroking his chin. “We could knock out another team if they have it, but ideally we’d find one to start with.” 

“I think I can help get us a head start,” Minori said, fingering a seal. As the attendant stepped forward, he shut his eyes tightly. “You’ll want to close your eyes for this.” 

“Begin!” the attendant yelled, and Minori threw down the seal. A bright light flashed directly in front of the shinobi, who shouted out as they were suddenly blinded. Some of them lashed out at the people next to them, but Minori was already moving, with his partner hot on his heels. He stayed on the ground, while the other man went above him, running through the trees. 

“Coming from behind!” the man called, after a few moments, just as a pendulum whipped through the air. Minori threw himself on the ground and rolled away as a boot landed where his chest had been a moment before. 

“We’re going for the team with a kid, really?” the woman hissed. 

“That’s the Hokage’s grandson,” the man beside her said grimly. “Trust me, we want to take him out quick.” 

The woman shrugged, and began spinning her pendulum in a circle. “If you insist. Come on, big guy, want to dance?” 

His partner leapt forward, striking out at her with a series of powerful kicks, while she darted around him. Minori rolled out of the way of a blast of flame from the man, and reached out to slice across his ankles with a hand enveloped in medical chakra as he rolled. The man screamed in pain as the chakra sliced through his Achilles’ tendons, and sank to the ground, unable to move. Minori left him there, and unsealed his naginata to snag the woman’s pendulum as it whipped through the air, towards his partner. The pendulum wrapped itself around his naginata, and the woman cursed and dropped her end of the strings. Minori darted forward, aiming the blade at her chest. She drew a kunai to parry, but was forced to roll away when Minori’s partner aimed another kick at her. 

“Keep looking, I’ll keep her busy!” Minori called. The man nodded and raced off, and when the woman made as if to follow him, Minori called up the trees to halt her. She cursed and flung out an explosive tag, destroying some of them and sending up a cloud of dirt and debris. 

Minori took quick stock of his chakra before activating Kamui, appearing behind her. She squinted into the dust cloud, trying to locate him even as he swung his naginata through the air and slammed it into the back of her head. She sank to the ground, and he had a moment to breathe. 

“Kid! Look alive!” 

Minori looked up and spotted his former opponent waving a green flag through the air. “You got it!” 

“Yeah, snatched it right out from under these bastards,” he snapped, and shoved the flag at him. “Here, take it! Seal it in something, I don’t know, just hurry. Before they get here!” 

Minori grabbed it just as the other two shinobi burst through the foliage to land in front of them. For a moment, they stared at each other, and then at the flag in Minori’s hand. 

Minori did the first thing that came to mind: shoving the flag down his pants. 

Minori’s partner gave him a disbelieving look. “What?” Minori said. “No one’s going to want to stick their hand down my pants!” 

He grimaced. “That’s true, but still!” 

“We can debate this later!” Minori yelled, as one of their opponents threw a barrage of shuriken in their direction. He spun his naginata, blocking most of them and letting the rest fly past. Kamui would finish this battle quickly, but he was running low on chakra. Shunshin, however, was still within his limits, so he flashed forwards and jumped, colliding feet-first with the opposing shinobi’s chest. He slammed the butt of his naginata into the man’s head, wincing as something sharp dug into his leg at the same time. He jumped off as the man fell, and quickly pulled out the kunai and began to heal his wound as soon as he made sure it wasn’t poisoned. 

A groan, a thud, and he turned to see his partner sink to the ground as the remains of a genjutsu dispersed. The man tried a genjutsu on Minori next, but wasn’t stupid enough to trust that it would work, instead jumping back and flicking through the seals of a jutsu. Minori, grinning, began to copy him, throwing out the hand signals sometimes even before the man completed them.

A fist made of earth punched up from the ground, aiming for his face, and he leapt into the air, using the fist to boost himself forward as he began to fall. He rocketed towards his opponent, naginata aimed towards him. The man stepped to the side and grabbed the naginata, using it to flip Minori through the air. He would have slammed into the dirt if he hadn’t let go, instead allowing the momentum to fling him into the trees.

The man turned around, already halfway through the seals for a jutsu, and Minori reached into his pouch.

Obito had given it to him—for emergencies only, he’d said. Just three of them, but one was enough. 

Minori popped the soldier pill into his mouth, wincing at the bitter taste. He felt it take effect just as the man roared the name of his attack, and whispered, “Kamui.” 

And then, before the man could even blink, Minori was behind him. Minori slammed the hilt of his wakizashi into the man’s head before he realized Minori was even there and secured his wrists and his partner’s with ninja wire. Then, and only then, did he briefly allow himself to sink down against a tree, gasping for breath. 

The forest was quiet, but for the sounds of fighting in the distance. 

Minori stood with a groan and stumbled over to his partner. He managed to pull him up enough to get his arms under the man’s armpits and around his chest, and began the slow work of dragging him away from the scene of his fight. As he walked, he made a show of quietly sniffling and crying, and even exaggerated the limp of his injured leg, to persuade any would-be attackers. Sure enough, although he heard footsteps a few times, no one tried to approach him, evidently having decided that he had nothing worth taking. 

Eventually he found a small cranny in a tree that seemed far enough away from the battles and close enough to the edge of the forest, and rested his partner against it, while he leaned against a root and sniffled into his knees. 

He estimated that no more than half an hour had passed before the man groaned and began to stir. “Kid?” the man asked, a few moments later. “KId, you okay? Did they take it?” 

He rubbed his eyes dry. “No,” he said, to the man’s obvious surprise. “Still have it. I was just pretending. We should go, I think it’s about time for the test to end. You should carry me on your back, like I’m injured.” 

“Are you?” he asked, his eyes landing on the quick bandage he’d wrapped around his leg. 

The leg ached, and he’d done a rushed job of healing it, but that was fine. “I healed it, don’t worry,” he said. “It’ll make people more likely to ignore us, though.” 

The man shrugged and knelt up, showing his back to Minori, who wrapped his arms around the man’s neck. The man stood carefully, and hesitantly tucked his arms under Minori’s legs, obviously unused to carrying people in this method. He grew used to it as they made their way through the forest, however, and before long the two of them were emerging from the trees, where the attendants waited. 

“There are twenty minutes remaining in the test,” the attendant announced. 

“There’s no rule saying we can’t stay here, is there?” Minori asked. 

“There is not,” the attendant confirmed. 

Minori slipped down. “Here, let me take a look at your head while we wait. I’m not officially qualified to care for head wounds yet, but I can at least bandage it for you until you can see a professional.” 

By the time he’d finished disinfecting and bandaging the man’s wound, the attendant had blown the whistle and the rest of the attendants had emerged from the forest, although the man whose tendons he’d severed had to be carried out by his partner. 

“Will all those with a flag in their possession step forward and return the flag,” the attendant ordered. 

Minori turned around as he pulled out the flag. “Um, here,” he said, holding it out. 

The man made a very  _ interesting  _ face, somewhere between a sneer and a grimace, and drew back. “On second thought, you may keep that as a memento of your experience. Please, follow me.” 

The ten people who had passed followed the man into another section of the palace, this time a corridor with numbered rooms on each side. 

“Each of you will enter a room,” the man said, “and defeat the guardian inside. The same rules stand as for the previous sessions. You also may not enter the same room as someone else. The only rooms you may enter are one through eleven. Begin!” 

Minori pushed open the door to room seven, and found inside a grinning, lean man with two tanto at his sides. He stood, for a moment, in the doorway, watching the man. He was clearly built for speed, judging by his stature and choice of weapon, and would probably be able to outpace Minori. Minori’s chakra reserves were low, even with the soldier pill he’d taken, and he didn’t have enough to want to risk Kamui. The guardian, on the other hand, was most likely fresh and ready to fight. 

Neither of them moved. 

“All I have to do is defeat you?” he asked. 

“Correct,” the smiling man agreed. 

“Then . . . do you have a shogi board?” 

***

Nine people gathered in a room, murmuring to each other and nursing their bruises. They all looked up as the door opened, letting in a tenth person, and quickly folded him into the conversation. 

“Pass or fail?” one of them asked. 

The tenth man groaned. “Pass. Damn, he was a big guy! Beat me in the stamina department, in the end. How about you?” 

“Pass,” said one more, while all the others announced failures. 

The man looked around the room, and seemed to realize something. “Hang on, where’s Hiroki?” 

“Not back yet,” a woman replied. “He’s the only one not finished yet.” 

The door slammed open, revealing a tall, lean man who was no longer smiling. He looked, quite frankly, absolutely exhausted, even though a scan for injuries revealed nothing.

“Were you up against a genjutsu user?” he wondered. 

He groaned and sank to the floor. “Gods, I wish! No, worse . . . the damn brat had me playing shogi. Shogi!” 

“You spent a whole three hours playing shogi?” a woman exclaimed. 

“Best two out of three. He passed,” the man groaned. “Never speak to me again. I just got my ass kicked at shogi by a thirteen-year-old, and he acted like it wasn’t even hard.” 

“Thirteen?” the tenth man said. “What the hell?” 

“I know, I know! That’s what I was thinking,” he said, tugging at his hair. “This little shrimp walks in, carrying a naginata practically twice his size, and I was thinking I was going to have to beat up some kid, when he goes and suggests shogi!” 

“I seem to remember a certain someone asked to play rock paper scissors,” another one said, with a sly look at the tenth man. 

“Who the hell is this kid, anyways?” a woman asked. 

“That’s the real kicker,” the man said. “I asked Yato, and apparently he’s the Hokage’s grandson, or something. Kakashi of the Mokuton’s kid. Midori, or something.” 

A silence fell over them, only disrupted when the door opened once again. “Come,” the attendant said. “The Daimyo has selected the newest member of your ranks.” 

***

Minori stared down at the sash draped over his hands, hardly able to believe that it was really happening. 

“Minori Hatake,” the daimyo intoned. “Do you swear to offer your live to serve and protect the Daimyo and his family?” 

“I do,” he murmured. 

The Daimyo nodded. “Then rise, as the twelfth member of the Guardian Ninja, and wear that sash with pride.” 

The sash was too big for him, clearly made for an adult, but someone had folded it enough that when he tied it around his waist, it didn’t look too silly. 

“Yato will give you further instructions,” the Daimyo said. 

The attendant who had led him through the tests stepped forward and left the room, subtly beckoning for Minori to follow him. Recognizing the dismissal, Minori fell into step behind the attendant, who led him down the halls of the palace until they reached the upper level where the Daimyo slept. 

“Each of the twelve has a room here. Yours will be here,” he said, leading Minori to a room in the middle of the hallway. You have also been assigned a partner, who you will meet shortly. You will primarily work with your partner on your patrols and while guarding the Daimyo, and are expected to practice working in concert with him. Understand.” 

Minori nodded, and then asked, “So, who’s my partner?” 

“That would be me,” a deep voice said.

Minori turned towards the door, and found himself staring at a pair of legs. He followed those legs up, but instead of reaching a face, only found the man’s chest before the rest was cut off by the top of the door. The man ducked, stepping through to reveal a broad, rugged face, with tanned skin and a full, dark beard. He looked, Minori privately thought, kind of like a bear. 

He was also around twice Minori’s height. Whoever had made this assignment had a very strange sense of humor.

“Daiki Yamada,” the man said, holding out a hand. 

Minori shook the man’s hand. “Minori Hatake. You can just call me Minori!” 

The man put a large hand on Minori’s shoulder and led him towards the door. “And you can call me Daiki. Now, let me introduce you to the others.”

The guardians were scattered throughout the palace. Two of them were guarding the Daimyo, two of them his wife, and two of them his oldest son. The remaining four children had one guardian each, leaving Daiki and Minori on reserve while Minori was given a tour of the palace and introduced to the household. 

This included, to Minori’s delight, being ‘introduced’ to Yuzuki, who was so happy to see him that she dismissed her tutor in the middle of a lesson in order to talk to him. 

“I am ever so glad to see you again,” Yuzuki said once they were alone except for Daiki and the guardian who had been watching over Yuzuki. The two guardians were embroiled in a discussion of their own, so MInori was pretty sure they weren’t listening. “You must tell me everything that has happened since we last met.” 

“I’m happy to see you too, Yuzuchii,” he said. And, surprisingly, he was. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lots of Minori this chapter! Don't worry, we'll get back to everyone else next chapter. 
> 
> In other news, more fanart! This time, [Kaede](https://maislinnk.tumblr.com/post/189535985042/inspired-by-anachronism).


	45. Chapter 45

Usually, Narumi was only summoned to the Hokage’s office when Sakumo wanted to involve the elders or other members of his staff in their discussions. There wasn’t much point in Narumi taking the trip all the way out to the administration building when they could just talk at home later. 

“Shisui,” Narumi greeted when he approached, spotting the young man at the desk outside the Hokage’s office. “You’re not joining in the meeting?” 

Shisui shook his head. “No, it’s just you.” 

“Huh.” Narumi frowned. “Any idea what it’s about?” 

Shisui shook his head. “He received a letter, but I haven’t read it. He hasn’t said a word about it to anyone, yet.” 

Narumi considered what it could be--a letter from Jiraiya, maybe, letting them know something about the Akatsuki? He’d been trying to keep tabs on them on the occasions that he left the village, at least enough to figure out that they hadn’t made any moves on the jinchuuriki yet. He’d been trying to pin down their identities to make sure that they were the members he was familiar with, but as of yet hadn’t found much more than a trail of dead bounties--which, if nothing else, spoke for Kakuzu’s involvement. A quick letter to Tsubame had confirmed that Zabuza wasn’t with the Kiri rebels, but that didn’t necessarily mean he’d joined the Akatsuki. 

Of Jiraiya’s Ame orphans, he hadn’t heard anything other than vague rumors about a civil war in Ame that may or may not have ended. He’d tried to get into Ame to find out more on his last trip out of the village, but stealth wasn’t his strong suit, and the Ame shinobi were ruthless when it came to dissuading interlopers. 

And Madara and Zetsu, of course, had vanished into the ether once again. 

Next time, he’d be ready for them--he’d been working on all sorts of tricky fuinjutsu traps in case Zetsu tried to show his face in Konoha again--but he doubted that Sakumo had called him in just to talk about new developments in village security. 

When he entered the office, Sakumo was staring down at his desk. “Sakumo,” Narumi greeted. “What’s up?” 

“The Daimyo has selected the newest member of the Twelve Guardians,” Sakumo said. 

“Anyone we know?” 

“Minori.” 

Narumi squinted at him. “Minori . . . as in, your grandson? Is this a prank?” 

“I wish. See for yourself.” Narumi accepted the letter that Sakumo held out and skimmed through it. Sakumo sighed and massaged his temples. “Take a break, I said. Spend some time with your friends, I said. Not, run off and join a force of elite bodyguards!” 

“At least the Daimyo is happy?” Narumi suggested, handing the letter back to Sakumo. “He thanked you for ‘honoring him by sending your own grandson’ or something.” 

“That makes it worse. They aren’t likely to send him back,” Sakumo sighed. “It’s good for relations with the Daimyo, to be sure, and it’s a good experience for him—but I can’t help but worry. Not when we still aren’t certain what Madara is planning.” 

“About that,” Narumi said. “I had some thoughts—and actually, you might want to call Jiraiya here and tell him, too. He’s been looking into the Akatsuki, right?” 

“He has--and you’re right, there’s definitely something strange about them. Jiraiya reported that recently they’ve started tailing some of the jinchuuriki, and there’s something strange going on in Ame. The village seems to have recently changed leadership, but Jiraiya can’t get near the place.” 

“Tell him not to worry about it. I’m working on it.” 

Sakumo laughed. “I feel like I should be the one telling you that. Who’s the Hokage here, again? But go on, go on—I did put you in charge of this investigation.” 

“I want Naruto to train with Jiraiya.” 

Sakumo frowned and steepled his fingers. “I admit, I thought you might want to talk to me about Naruto’s training, but I thought you would want to handle it yourself.” 

“Traveling with Jiraiya will be good for him,” Narumi said. “And if someone does come looking for him . . . staying on the move with Jiraiya will keep him safe. And Jiraiya has things to teach him. His father’s techniques.” 

Sakumo nodded. “I’ll write to Jiraiya and have him return to the village—he should still be nearby.” 

“I also wanted to talk to you about Sakura,” Narumi said, producing a letter of his own and passing it to Sakumo. 

Sakumo whistled. “Well, now. That’s certainly something. Are you certain, Narumi? You’ll be giving up both of your students.” 

Narumi nodded. “I’ve laid down the foundations. Now it’s time for them to build on them—this, I think, will help them.” 

“It’ll certainly keep them from falling behind while Minori’s training with the Twelve Guardians,” Sakumo laughed. “He’ll have to work hard to keep up, given their teachers. I don’t envy Sakura, having Tsubame as a teacher!” 

“She’ll be fine,” Narumi said. “They all will.” 

***

Naruto was taking a break from the psychology textbook in favor of his latest sealing project—a genjutsu-breaking seal that would send out a burst of chakra whenever it detected a genjutsu—when he got the summons from the Hokage. Naruto didn’t usually get summons from the Hokage, since he was only a chuunin and Sakumo was over at their house whenever he had a free moment anyways, so it was with some apprehension that he made his way to the Hokage’s office. 

He arrived to find Sakura waiting outside. “Sakura, hey. You got summoned too? What do you think it is? They wouldn’t give us a mission without Minori, would they? Oh, or maybe they found him!” Naruto grinned at the thought; he couldn’t wait to give Minori a piece of his mind for running off like that. 

Sakura bit her lip. “I’m not sure. I hope they found him. But . . . they might have decided to assign us to a new squad. If Minori requested a leave of absence, that means that even if he returns, he probably won’t want to go immediately back to active duty.” 

“What?” Naruto squawked. “But they can’t split us up! We’re Team Seven!” 

The door slammed open, making both of them jump. Kakashi stormed from the office, his one visible eye cold and empty. Obito ran after him, calling his name, his eyes faintly red. Naruto and Sakura cast each other nervous glances. 

“Come in, you two,” Sakumo called from the office. He smiled at them as they took positions in front of his desk, but it was small and tired. His voice was faintly hoarse, like he’d been yelling, and he took a sip of tea before speaking again. “I’m sorry about that, I’d meant to deal with that before you arrived, but Obito’s tendency to be late remains the one constant in this world.” 

He sighed, and set aside the tea. “I have news for you.” 

“Good news, or bad news?” Naruto asked. 

“It is what you make of it,” Sakumo said, which did exactly nothing to quell the nerves fluttering in his stomach. Judging by the way Sakura was nervously fiddling with the hem of her shirt, she didn’t feel much better. “Minori has been accepted as one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja.” 

For a moment, there was silence, before Naruto exclaimed, “What? Jiji, you’re joking, right?” 

Sakumo sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I wish I was. I had intended for Minori to relax and take a break,” he muttered. “But my grandson has a mind of his own. Apparently, in his mind, rest entails joining the Twelve Guardians.” 

“You mean the Twelve Guardians that protect the Daimyo, right?” Sakura interjected. 

Sakumo nodded. “One of the twelve was recently killed by bounty hunters. Minori has taken his place. He now must serve the Daimyo until he wishes to leave and the Daimyo allows him to, or until there is a true emergency that requires his talents. Or if he gets elected Hokage, but you will understand if I hope that doesn’t happen.” Sakumo tried to smile, but soon gave up and took another sip of tea. “I’d hoped that he would return soon and the three of you would be able to reform your team, but that clearly won’t be happening for some years yet.” 

“Are you going to give us another team member?” Sakura asked. 

“Not quite. Just as Minori is off honing his individual skills, I have opportunities for both of you as well. Sakura, I understand you’re interested in medical seals and jutsu,” he said. Sakura nodded tentatively. “I have a very good friend who is looking for a new apprentice, and would appreciate your assistance. It would, however, require that you leave Konoha for Uzushio. Naruto, Jiraiya has offered to take you on a training trip. I’m sure you know why.” 

Naruto could take an educated guess, at least—something to do with summoning or controlling the Kyuubi. “So you’re splitting us up?” 

“Only for a few years,” Sakumo said. “All of you will spend time honing your skills as individuals, and come together stronger for it. Even the Sannin didn’t spend all their years working together as a team, hmm?” 

Sakura nodded shakily. “Yes, sir.” 

“Yes, sir,” Naruto echoed. 

“Do you accept, then?” Sakumo asked. The two of them glanced at each other, and then nodded. “Excellent. Naruto, Jiraiya plans to leave within the week. Head home for now, and he’ll find you there to tell you what to bring with you. Sakura, I’ll have a team ready to escort you to Uzushio by the end of the week. Give this to your parents,” he said, handing her a scroll. “Naruto, I already discussed everything with Narumi, and he’s given his permission. Dismissed.” 

They left, the doors closing with a loud creak behind them. Naruto glanced over at Sakura, only to find her scrubbing silent tears from her cheeks. “Ah—ah, Sakura, are you okay?” he asked. 

She sniffed. “I’m fine,” she said. “I just . . . I didn’t expect this.” 

Naruto sighed. “Yeah, me neither. C’mon, wanna grab lunch?” 

She hesitated, for a moment, and then nodded. “Not Ichiraku.” 

“Yakiniku?” he suggested. She shrugged, and then nodded again. Naruto met her red-rimmed eyes, and quickly looked away. “Let’s go.” 

They walked in silence, and sat in the booth at silence, only speaking when the waitress came by for their order. They even cooked their meat in silence, and both of them jolted in surprise when the door opened to let in a burst of loud, high-pitched laughter. 

“Ah, it’s Team 6.5!” Ino exclaimed, pointing at them. In the blink of an eye, Naruto found himself seated next to Shikamaru, the cooking chopsticks claimed by Choji on Shikamaru’s other side, with Ino next to Sakura. “So, what’s up? Why the long faces, you two? Choji, order us more food!” 

Naruto glumly shoveled rice into his mouth. “Minori’s not coming back,” he said, after a moment. “He joined the Twelve Guardians.” 

“Oh, really?” 

Naruto looked up in surprise as Asuma slid into the booth beside Ino and Sakura. “That little punk,” he said. “And to think he didn’t tell me.” 

“C’mon, who’d tell a lame geezer like you,” Ino snorted. 

“You were a Guardian, weren’t you, Sarutobi-san?” Sakura asked curiously. 

He grimaced. “Asuma-sensei or Asuma-san is fine. Sarutobi-san makes me sound too old. And yeah, I was, a while ago. All the people who were Guardians when I was are long gone.” 

“That’s not all,” Naruto said. “Jiji said we’re leaving too. Sakura’s going to train with some friend of his in Uzushio, and Jiraiya wants to take me on a trip.” 

“Eh? That’s not cool at all! Uzushio is going to totally ruin your hair!” Ino exclaimed. 

“A friend, hmm?” Asume said, looking thoughtful. Shikamaru glanced at him and then sighed and laid his head down on the table. Choji patted his shoulder and passed him a plate of meat. 

“Do you know who it could be?” Sakura asked. 

“I have an idea, but I think it’d be better to let you find out on your own,” Asuma chuckled. 

Choji placed another plate in front of Naruto. It was good to perfection, as it always was when Choji took charge of the yakiniku. He sighed and began to eat. “Still, I was hoping that Minori would come back soon and we could do missions together again.” 

“He won’t be there forever,” Asuma said. “You should make the most of your training while you can. Not everyone gets these sorts of opportunities, you know. Besides, don’t you want to show your teammate how much you’ve grown when he gets back?” 

Naruto perked up at that. “You’re right! Sakura, let’s do our best!” 

Sakura, after a moment, grinned back at him. “Right! I’ll bet I can beat you in a spar when I get back.” 

“Well, I’ll bet that I can beat you and Minori when I get back!” Naruto countered. 

As they left the restaurant at the end of their meal, Naruto commented, “Y’know, Asuma-sensei, you’re actually kind of cool.” 

“Thanks—hey, what do you mean, actually? And kind of? I was always cool, you punk!” 

Snickering under his breath, Naruto waved goodbye to the others, leaving Asuma spluttering in the street while his students teased him. Sakura went off in the other direction, towards her house, a determined expression on her face and her scroll clenched tight in her fist. 

“Ji-chan! I’m home!” he called as he opened the sliding door and slipped off his shoes in favor of his orange house slippers. 

“Over here!” 

Naruto walked to the porch, where Narumi was sitting with Sakumo, staring down at a shogi board. “This game again?” he said, taking a seat between them. 

“With Minori gone, I am severely lacking in shogi partners,” Sakumo sighed. 

“Shikamaru’s pretty good at that, I think,” Naruto offered. “Minori used to play with him all the time.” 

“Shikaku’s son? Maybe I’ll ask him to a game,” Sakumo mused as he moved one of his pieces. 

Narumi groaned. “I thought I was decent at shogi, but you prove me wrong time and time again,” he said, even as he smiled fondly at Sakumo across the shogi board. 

Naruto made a gagging noise. “You two are gross! Ji-chan, I’m going to train.” 

“Jiraiya’s coming by in the morning, so don’t stay up too late,” Narumi called. 

Naruto waved a hand. “Yeah, yeah.” 

He wandered through the forest, no real destination in mind, until he wandered the small clearing where he and Minori had practiced with their weapons back when they were still academy students. He fingered a kunai, but after a moment sighed and sat down against the tree. 

“Jeez, Minori. What in the world are you thinking? All that reading and I still don’t get you.” 

Maybe Inoichi would have something interesting to say. He usually did, the few times Naruto had gone over to the flower shop to demand explanations about something the book had said. He had to return the book, anyways. Who knew how long the training trip would last. 

Sakumo and Narumi were still being gross and lovey-dovey, so Naruto made a swift escape from the house after retrieving the book. It wasn’t that late, so the flower shop was still open, and thankfully Inoichi was at the counter instead of Ino’s mom or someone else. 

“Yo, old man!” Naruto greeted. “I came here to bring your book back!” 

Inoichi’s eyebrows arched up. “Finished already?” 

“Nah,” Naruto said, as he slid the book across the counter. “I was gonna keep reading it, but I thought I should give it back since I’m going on a training trip with Jiraiya. I dunno how long it’ll be, either.” 

Inoichi slid the book back towards Naruto. “Keep it. I’m sure I have another one lying around at home somewhere. You can write to me with any questions you have.” 

“I can? Great! I’m gonna have a lot,” Naruto warned. “I, uh, I actually have one right now. Did you hear about Minori?” 

“Ino came here about an hour ago and talked my ear off about it, yes,” Inoichi said. 

Naruto leaned against the counter and frowned down at an oddly-shaped stain on the wood. “D’you know why he did it?” 

“Joined the Guardians, or left the village?” 

“I dunno. Both. Either.” 

“Well, I can’t say for sure, of course,” Inoichi said. “Only Minori can do that. But I can offer you my best guess while you help me pot some plants.” 

Naruto nodded and pushed away from the counter. “Yeah, okay. You’ve got a deal.” 

“Excellent. Right this way.” 

Naruto accepted the gloves and apron Inoichi handed him, although he didn’t really care about getting dirty, and went to work besides Inoichi. They worked in silence for a few moments, while Inoichi gathered his thoughts. 

“The village, right now, holds a lot of painful memories for him,” Inoichi said at last. “He may have left to escape those memories. And, of course, there’s the matter of your last mission. I heard it didn’t go well.” 

Naruto snorted. “That’s an understatement. Minori freaked out in the middle of a fight and we had to knock him out.” 

“So, he may be afraid of hurting you, or other people he loves,” Inoichi explained. 

“Minori wouldn’t do that,” Naruto mumbled, even as he remembered the look in Minori’s eyes when he’d freaked out during the mission. Wild, like an animal backed into a corner with nowhere to go. 

“Not intentionally,” Inoichi said softly. “But that doesn’t make him any less afraid.” 

“So . . . Minori ran away because he was scared?” 

“That’s one of many possible reasons. He may have had multiple reasons for leaving.” 

“Okay. But then why did he join the Guardians, if he was scared of hurting someone?” 

“The Guardians aren’t people he knows,” Inoichi said. “And he may have been looking for somewhere to belong. Minori has grown up his whole life in the village; his entire identity is tied to being a shinobi of Konoha. If he’s not a shinobi of Konoha, then what is he? Who is he? It’s a frightening thing, to throw yourself into the world with nothing to hold onto.” 

Naruto turned that over in his mind for a while as he gently moved one plant from a too-small pot to a larger one. He’d never known anything other than Konoha and Uzushio; he’d never considered being anything but a shinobi. If he wasn’t a shinobi, what would he be? 

“Hey, old man. What would you be, if you weren’t a shinobi?” 

“Well, I might own a flower shop, just like this one. Or I might be a psychiatrist, like I am now.” He chuckled softly. “I might not be the best person to ask. I dabble in other professions.” 

“Ino’d probably have a clothing line,” Naruto snickered. 

Inoichi laughed. “That does sound like her.” 

“And Choji would be a chef, and Shikamaru would play shogi for a job, like those super old guys on television,” Naruto said. “And Sai would be a painter, and Shino would raise bugs and stuff. Like, uh, a beekeeper? Maybe? And Kiba would raise dogs! That’s a job, right?” 

“I don’t see why not,” Inoichi said. “Plenty of people pay money for dogs.” 

“And Heiwa would, uh, I dunno. She’s super smart and stuff, so maybe she’d be a librarian or something?” 

“Or a university professor,” Inoichi offered. 

“What’s a university?” 

“An institute for higher learning,” Inoichi said. “School for adults, essentially.” 

Naruto wrinkled his nose. “Ew. Heiwa would love it. And, uh, Hinata really likes flowers and sweets and stuff, so maybe she’d have a flower shop or a bakery or something. And Sasuke would—uh, do civilians have police?” 

“They do,” Inoichi said. “Not in Konoha, of course, but most cities have a civilian militia or police force of some sort to handle everyday issues.” 

“He’d do that, I guess. Except that’s still kinda close to being a shinobi. If he had to do something completely different, I dunno what he’d do. Grow tomatoes?” 

Inoichi laughed, and Naruto grinned. “And Sakura, she’d be a doctor! And Minori, Minori could be a doctor too! He likes that medical stuff. Or maybe a researcher, because he spends a bunch of time at the lab? And me . . .” 

He thought for a moment more, and then turned to Inoichi with a blinding grin. “I guess I’d want to help people!” 

Inoichi smiled back at him. “That sounds like you.” 

“I think this training trip thing is gonna be really great,” Naruto said. “And not just because of all the cool jutsu Jiraiya is gonna teach me! I mean, I’ve never been out of the village except for missions and stuff, and this is completely different. He told me that he goes around talking to people and gathering information and stuff so he can send everything he learns back to the village.” 

“Jiraiya’s information network is vital to the village,” Inoichi agreed. “He has a knack for getting people to spill information without them even realizing what they’re doing.” 

“He says he makes them feel like they can talk to him. And I guess I wanna be like that! Except not all perverted and gross like he is. And also not because I want to get information from them, but because I want to help them. I wish . . . I wish I’d been someone Minori felt he could talk to,” Naruto mumbled. “I tried to help, but I guess I just helped him not talk to people.” 

“We all make mistakes,” Inoichi said. “It’s part of the learning process. And people are an especially complicated subject to learn about, simply because every person is a little bit different. For instance, I wouldn’t go about helping Ino with a problem the same way I’d go about helping you with one. The best way to learn about people is by going out, meeting as many people as possible, and getting to know them. So enjoy your training trip. You’re sure to meet all kinds of people.” 

Naruto grinned and held up his fist. “Yeah!” 

Inoichi stared at his fist. 

Naruto held his fist out further. “You bump it. A fist bump. Here, you make a fist too.” 

Inoichi held up his fist with a bemused smile. Naruto bumped their fists together. “Yeah!” 

“Is that what the kids are doing now?” Inoichi wondered, still smiling slightly. 

“Get with the times, old man!” Naruto jeered playfully. “Thanks for talking! I gotta go get ready for my trip now. Oh, yeah, and thanks for the book!” 

“Have fun!” Inoichi called after him, as Naruto retrieved the book and dashed out of the flower shop. 

Naruto turned and waved at him one last time. “I will! And I’m gonna come back ten times—no, wait, a hundred times as strong! Just you wait!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late chapter! Next chapter, we'll see what everyone got up to while training. 
> 
> Also, fanart of Heiwa: https://maislinnk.tumblr.com/post/189677380812/inspired-by-anachronism


	46. Interlude: Year 1, Part 1

“You know, that would be a lot easier with two hands.” 

Naruto didn’t bother looking up at Jiraiya; he had more important things to do. Namely, finishing the letter he was writing. It was hard with only one hand, but his other was busy doing another one of those weird exercises Jiraiya had set him to doing. The last one had involved popping a water balloon by making the water spin with chakra. This one involved popping a rubber ball with chakra. It was harder than it sounded, and he had yet to pop the ball despite training all day. “Yeah, but I’ve gotta finish writing this thing, too.” 

“What’s that?” 

“Something Inoichi’s making me do,” Naruto said. “You know that book he gave me? I wrote back to ask him some questions about the stuff in it, but he said that I had to write an essay about some stuff we talked about earlier before he would answer my questions. But I really wanted him to answer so I wrote the stupid essay, and he  _ graded  _ it!” 

“I take it this is it?” Jiraiya crouched down and picked up the crumpled sheet of paper Naruto had shoved into his bag. “70 out of 100? That’s not so bad. Better than I ever did in the Academy.” 

“I haven’t written an essay that bad, ever!” Naruto declared. “I’m gonna show him. This essay’s gonna knock his socks off.” 

“You’re writing another one?” 

“Yeah,” Naruto muttered. “He said I had to if I wanted the answers to my other questions. And I’m not gonna give up now! This is gonna be the best essay ever written, and Inoichi can take that and shove it up his—argh!” 

Naruto’s arm jerked across the paper as the balloon burst. Jiraiya laughed and ruffled Naruto’s hair. “Nice going, brat.” 

Naruto scowled down at the line across his paper. It hadn’t crossed over any of his writing, at least, and Inoichi had never said the essays had to be pretty. He quickly scribbled a few concluding lines, folded up the letter, and summoned the toad he’d been using to pass his letters along to Inoichi.

That taken care of, he turned to Jiraiya and held out the remains of the rubber ball. “Okay! I did it. What’s next?” 

“This,” Jiraiya said, handing Naruto a balloon. 

“Let me guess. I’ve gotta pop this one too. Can’t you come up with something more interesting?” Naruto groaned. He’d almost rather answer one of Inoichi’s weird prompts. 

“Bzzt! Wrong!” Jiraiya declared. “This time, you have to do everything you did with the last ones, except you can’t pop the balloon. You have to combine the first two steps into a contained sphere; if the balloon pops, you haven’t done it right.” 

That didn’t sound so hard—he’d had to really try to pop the other ones, so this would be a piece of cake. Naruto narrowed his eyes at the balloon and began to spin his chakra inside it. 

Seconds later, he was holding the shredded rubber that had once been a balloon while Jiraiya laughed his ass off. 

Naruto scowled and threw the shredded balloon at him. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, Super Perv. Just get me another balloon already.” 

Jiraiya tossed him a bag of balloons. “Blow them up yourself. I’ve got better things to do.” 

“You mean you’re gonna go to the hot springs or whatever again,” Naruto said. 

“Joys of being an adult!” Jiraiya said, heading off with a final jaunty wave. “Don’t go wandering off! We’re leaving as soon as I get back.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Naruto groused. 

He blew up several balloons, enough to last a few hours, and got to work. Before, when he’d just been spinning his chakra, he’d let it go wherever it wanted to as he spun it, since he wanted to burst the balloons and balls anyways. Now, however, he had to keep it contained, since even a little bit of pressure from the swirling chakra would burst the balloon. But if he only focused on containing it, then he forgot to spin it. 

Another balloon popped. Naruto groaned and flopped back on the bed. “My head hurts.” 

Maybe he could get a clone to contain it, while he focused on spinning it? That might work. But then what if someone popped his clone while he was trying to do the technique? It would work, but in the long run it probably wouldn’t be very practical. 

Naruto idly tossed one of the balloons in the air, turning the problem over in his head. Maybe he needed a break. He’d go out for just a tiny bit—surely Jiraiya wouldn’t notice if Naruto only stepped out for a moment. 

Naruto slipped on his shoes and headed to the window—knowing Jiraiya, he’d probably stopped to get a drink from the hot bartender at the hotel bar before heading out. Jiraiya was predictable like that. Naruto didn’t want to run into him, so he slung one leg out the window, glancing down quickly to make sure he wasn’t going to land on anyone. 

The door creaked open, and Naruto jumped high enough to smack his head on the top of the window. “Gah! I wasn’t going out, really!” 

Jiraiya didn’t say anything. Naruto turned around, and found that the door was open, but there wasn’t anyone in sight. Naruto peered all around the room, but still, nothing. Even a quick burst of chakra, just in case there was a genjutsu, didn’t reveal anything. 

“Jeez, that stupid old man,” Naruto muttered, pulling his leg back in through the window. “He forgot to lock the door.” 

A massive, white spider crawled onto the bed. Naruto let out a shriek and leapt backwards to get away from the thing. He slammed into the wall, but momentum kept him going, and he tipped backwards out the window. He flailed wildly, attempting to latch onto anything that could stop his fall. He smacked into a branch of a tree, and, for a moment, was able to catch his breath. 

Then his hotel room exploded. 

A wave of heat washed over him, and he covered his face with one arm as shards of glass and wood flew through the air. Beneath him, the civilians screamed and panicked. Naruto risked a glance up to squint at the room. It wasn’t much of a room anymore; the roof and wall had been taken out completely, and the remains were a flaming, smoky mess. 

Naruto gulped. 

He really, really hoped that messing up the Rasengan didn’t have the potential to cause explosions. 

Although, come to think of it, an exploding Rasengan would be pretty cool. He’d have to ask Jiraiya about that later. Right now, he needed to get out of here and find Jiraiya before someone tried to bill him for the damages. 

"Dumbass! What the hell do you think you're doing?" 

"I told you! That was totally the Kyuubi jinchuuriki that went in there, yeah! He looked just like the pictures Leader showed us!"

"It's too early for the Kyuubi, idiot! We're supposed to be investigating the Sanbi." 

Naruto froze. Slowly, very slowly, he shifted on his branch and looked down. 

Two people stood near the foot of the tree. One of them was shorter, with long, blond hair in a ponytail. The other was huge, with a sword to match, and was clearly a Hoshigaki if Naruto remembered his Kiri clans correctly. And he'd bet anything that the sword wasn't just any old sword. 

Naruto attempted to swallow around a too-dry throat. He could maybe take the blond, if he was just a demolitions expert, but there was no way he could handle one of the Seven Swordsmen.

"We should get out of here," the swordsman said. 

The blond ignored him in favor of peering around. "Where'd the little shrimp go?" 

Jiraiya had to have heard the explosion—he couldn't have gotten far. Naruto would just stall until he arrived. 

"Hey, you!" he demanded. 

They both looked up. "That's him!" the blond exclaimed. "See, he's got blond hair, blue eyes, and he's an Uzumaki!" 

The swordsman squinted. "I dunno. It could be. Either way, it's too soon for the Kyuubi." 

"So? We can just keep him locked up or something until then," the blond said. 

Naruto scowled at them. He was not about to let them knock him out and lock him up somewhere. "Hey, did you blow up that hotel room?" 

The blond flipped him off. "So what if I did, yeah? It was pure art!" 

"Art? I coulda died!" Naruto exclaimed. 

"So? You should be honored to have been part of such a beautiful artistic display," the blond retorted. 

"Enough," the swordsman said. "Kid, what's your name?" 

"Na—" Naruto stopped. If they were searching for someone who looked like him, then they probably knew his name. Narumi? No, that was too close to his name. Minato? Too conspicuous. Kushina? 

"Kushina," Naruto said. 

The blond snorted. "Nakushina? What kind of a dumb name is that, yeah?" 

Shit. That was a dumb name. Naruto quickly tried to think of a way to improve it. "I said Nakashima! Clean out your ears!" 

"It's still a dumb name!" 

"Oh yeah? I bet yours is even dumber!" 

"Deidara is an infinitely better name!" 

“Enough,” the swordsman said. “I’m not gonna waste time arguing with some brat. We’re going.” 

“Yeah, yeah,” the blond said, flipping Naruto off one last time before turning to follow the swordsman. “I still say he’s probably the Kyuubi jinchuuriki!” 

“And I told you, we’re not supposed to get the Kyuubi yet—” 

Naruto watched as they vanished into the streets of Tanzaku-Gai, still bickering. As soon as they had vanished, a hand snagged Naruto by the back of his shirt and yanked him away. 

The world blurred around him, and then jerked to an abrupt stop. Naruto hit the ground and promptly ate dirt. “Ugh! Blech!” 

He spat repeatedly to get the taste out of his mouth, and then glared up at Jiraiya. “What’s the big idea? Were you watching the whole time?” 

“Yeah, yeah, quit complaining. I didn’t want to interfere,” Jiraiya said. “That would have only escalated things. You were beneath their notice, but that blue guy was itching for a fight.” 

“You mean the Hoshigaki swordsman guy?” Naruto said, as he stood and dusted himself off. 

Jiraiya’s gaze jerked towards him. “He introduced himself?” 

“I mean, nah,” Naruto said. “But he sure looks like a Hoshigaki. We learned about them in Uzushio, ‘cause they’re a clan from Kiri and we’ve fought them a bunch. And that was one of the swords belonging to the Seven Swordsmen, right? I forget which one though.” 

Jiraiya nodded. “That’s right. Samedare.” 

“Yeah!” Naruto said. “That’s the one, that’s the one!” 

“And the blond?” Jiraiya said. 

“Uh, he was from Iwa,” Naruto said. “His headband was scratched out, though, like the other guy’s. He said his name was Deidara.” 

Jiraiya whistled. “Really, Deidara? And Kisame Hoshigaki?” 

“Wait, you know them?” 

“Not personally. They’re S-ranked missing-nin,” Jiraiya said, stroking his chin. “But what would they be doing together? Iwa and Kiri aren’t exactly friendly.” 

“Uh, they said they were looking for jinchuuriki,” Naruto said. “They thought I looked like the Kyuubi jinchuuriki, and they said they were investigating the Sanbi.” 

Jiraiya seized his shoulders. “The jinchuuriki? Did they say that? Are you sure?” 

“Y-yeah? I think so?” Naruto said. “That’s why they blew up the hotel room, because they thought I was the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. But how would they even know that? Almost no one knows!” 

“You used the Kyuubi’s chakra during the chuunin exams,” Jiraiya muttered. “If they had agents watching the exams, they might have been able to piece things together . . . and of course, Rin’s identity has never been a secret because of that whole fiasco with Kiri. Kisame probably knows exactly who she is . . .” 

Jiraiya frowned into the distance. “I need to write a letter. But first, we’re getting out of here.” 

“‘Cause those guys might still be sticking around?” Naruto asked. 

“Because I don’t want to get stuck with the repair bill for that hotel room,” Jiraiya said. 

“Of course,” Naruto muttered. 

A deflated balloon smacked him in the head. “Get back to practicing!” Jiraiya said. “I expect to see progress by the time we reach the next town.” 

Naruto made a face at his back, and then got to work inflating the balloon, all the while wondering about the two missing-nin he had run into. 

*** 

Heiwa was good at ninjutsu—she always had been, even before she started at the Academy. As a child, she had begged people to teach her jutsu, picking up a fire jutsu from Obito, a water jutsu from Rin, an earth jutsu from Kogane. With the Sandaime as her mentor, she was only learning more and more jutsu. 

Her taijutsu, however, was comparatively lacking, and not correcting that seemed remiss when she had two teammates who were skilled in taijutsu.

Hence, Heiwa’s current position, facing off against Hinata in a taijutsu-only spar, while Sasuke watched from the sidelines and waited for his turn. 

Hinata hit one of Heiwa’s chakra points with a sharp jab, causing Heiwa to drop the hand she had pulled into a fist.

“You’re still getting no better at dodging her,” Sasuke said. 

Heiwa’s first instinct was to turn and glower at Sasuke, who was leaning against a nearby tree in an irritatingly casual pose. She resisted the urge, instead keeping her face purposefully blank as she nodded. 

“That’s—that’s not entirely true,” Hinata piped up. “I can tell you’ve definitely gotten faster!”

“You don’t need to defend me, Hinata. He’s right. I’m still not fast enough.”

“Well, at least you know that,” Sasuke said, with a small smirk that some people saw as cruel, but that she knew meant he was teasing her. 

“Sasuke! Don’t be mean!” Hinata’s said, so softly that her protest didn’t sound very threatening at all.

Sasuke shrugged. “It’s just constructive criticism. She appreciates it, right?”

Heiwa nodded. She did value his input, and Sasuke was undoubtedly better at taijutsu than her. However, while she would die before admitting it, his comments could be harsh.

A rustling of leaves interrupted the three teammates.

“Excuse me.”

The last person Heiwa wanted to deal with—other than perhaps Nawanuke, who she had last seen smashing their father’s favorite plate then stomping off with a few choice words—emerged from the trees. Heiwa had to suppress a scowl at the sight of his expressionless face. 

Neji Hyuuga.

“What are you doing here?” Heiwa demanded. Neji took a step forward, and she instinctively did the same, blocking Hinata from his path.

Neji stopped in his tracks. “I simply wish to talk.” 

“Forgive me if I don’t take you at your word,” she said. 

Heiwa and Neji stared each other down for several moments.

“We . . . we should listen to what he has to say.” Hinata’s voice was practically a whisper.

Heiwa looked at her, unable to keep her eyebrows from raising slightly, and backed away. Sasuke unfolded his arms and stood up straight.

“I owe you an apology,” Neji started, “for my reprehensible behavior towards you in the recent years. I know it is no excuse, but I let my bitterness as well as my father’s resentment towards the main house cloud my judgement. I was wrong to hold my lot in life against you; the blame for the actions of the Main Branch does not lie on your shoulders. My fight with Naruto helped me realize that. I hope you can forgive me.”

He bowed, and Hinata blinked.

“N-Neji . . .”

Before she could say anything else, Neji spoke up again.

“As a testament to my regret for treating you unfairly, I would like to offer my assistance to you. I heard that you have yet to pass the Chuunin exams. It is clear that you still have much to learn.”

“You want to . . . help me train?”

Neji straightened himself. “Yes.”

Hinata stood in contemplation for a moment before bowing so fervently that Heiwa was surprised she didn’t give herself whiplash. 

“Please teach me!”

Heiwa’s eyes widened. She knew Hinata had a heart of gold, but she didn’t expect her to actually accept Neji’s offer. Judging by Sasuke’s wide eyes, even he seemed surprised by this development.

“Very well. We can discuss more later. For now, it is getting late, and I should ensure that you make it back to the compound safely,” Neji said.

Heiwa glanced up at the sky and saw that the sun was starting to sink beneath the tops of the trees. Hinata nodded in agreement with her cousin, and gathered up her things. Heiwa unlodged a few stray shuriken that had landed in the surrounding trees, then she gathered with her teammates and their unwelcome addition as they headed out of the training grounds and back towards their houses.

Despite living in the opposite direction, Heiwa stayed with the two Hyuugas all the way to their compound. Sasuke had peeled off from the group earlier, leaving the three of them as they approached the Hyuuga estate.

“Wait.” Heiwa grabbed Neji by the wrist after Hinata entered the compound. He stopped and turned his head towards her, staring at her with his blank eyes. 

“Hinata may forgive easily, but I’m not like her,” Heiwa hissed, speaking quietly in case Hinata was still nearby. “I don’t trust you. I’ll be watching you, and if you make one wrong move, I won’t hesitate to do whatever it takes to protect Hinata. If you ever hurt her again, I promise I won’t lose to you a second time.”

Neji gave an almost imperceptible nod and continued on his way without another word once Heiwa released his wrist. Heiwa watched as he left, then began the walk back home, down the way she had just come.

***

“Ah!”

“You keep leaving the same opening. You must work on your awareness of your surroundings.”

Heiwa stopped in the middle of a maneuver to watch Neji and Hinata as they trained. Neji had just landed another hit, and Hinata looked ready to keel over at any moment. Heiwa could hear her panting even from the other side of the clearing; for a moment, she considered intervening in the fight. 

A sharp pain stopped those thoughts in their tracks. Heiwa grunted and stumbled back from Sasuke’s foot, which had just landed a solid kick to her gut; his taijutsu had gotten even better since he’d started training more often with his mother, the strange twists and turns adding an additional level of unpredictability to his aggressive attacks. Even when she was completely focused, he was a difficult opponent, and at the moment she certainly wasn’t focused. Judging by his smirk, he knew it as well. 

Heiwa decided to cut her losses and focus entirely on one thing, instead of attempting to split her attention. She waved Sasuke off and turned to watch the two Hyuugas, who had ended up being the worst distraction of all time. She often found herself losing track of her own sparring sessions in favor of observing the two Hyuugas. As she watched them, she couldn’t help but think that there was something beautiful about the Gentle Fist style. 

Neji got a few more hits on Hinata, and she managed one, before Neji called the fight to a stop. As Hinata recovered her breath and sipped at her water, Neji beckoned Heiwa and Sasuke over.

Over the past several weeks, Neji had become a sort of honorary member of their team, joining in their training whenever he wasn’t busy with his own duties. As much as she wished to, Heiwa couldn’t deny that the opportunity to take advantage of his expertise was an asset to them; Sasuke and Hinata both had yet to pass the exams, and Heiwa couldn’t turn down the opportunity to improve her taijutsu. 

As soon as Hinata had recovered, Neji spoke up. “I suggest we have one final match before retiring for the night. All four of us, two against two. Hinata, you will pair up with Sasuke to battle myself and Heiwa.” 

The two teams positioned themselves across from each other. On Neji’s word, the match started, and they began the fight. Considering Hinata’s state, Heiwa rushed towards her immediately in the hopes of finishing her off quickly so she could then assist Neji in taking down Sasuke, who would be a much more challenging opponent. She quickly realized, however, that she had miscalculated. Hinata had no problem dodging and countering her attack, as if she had some secret reservoir of energy she could tap into. Heiwa grit her teeth and pushed on, bracing herself for a more difficult fight than she had anticipated. 

The match stretched on, even as the light faded. None of them had managed to gain the upper hand, and while Neji and Sasuke seemed ready to brawl all through the night, Hinata and Heiwa both reached the point where they could barely stand. Finally, Hinata ducked under Heiwa’s defenses and managed to make a few quick blows to her side, neatly closing a few tenketsu. Heiwa collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath. Hinata followed her down, sprawling out on the grass and fanning herself with one hand.

Neji noticed the two girls falling and motioned for Sasuke to stop. Heiwa could see that while Neji did look tired, Sasuke was breathing significantly harder. Neji started to say something to him, but Sasuke ignored him in favor of collapsing next to Hinata. 

“I’m beat,” Sasuke declared.

Neji frowned for a moment, then sighed.

“Very well. I suppose a moment of rest before walking home can’t hurt.”

Neji stood there awkwardly while the other three lay on the ground until he caught Heiwa’s eye. He jerked his gaze away, but after a few moments looked back. He walked over to her, grass crunching underneath his feet, and sat down beside her. On her other side, Sasuke and Hinata whispered back and forth about something, but Heiwa didn’t even have the energy to attempt to eavesdrop. 

Heiwa lay back and looked up at the sky to find a spectacular array of stars sprinkled over the black expanse.

_ Incredible.  _

“Hmm?”

Heiwa’s eyes snapped to the side to find Neji staring at her. She hadn’t even been aware that she had spoken aloud. 

She motioned towards the sky. “I was just looking at the stars.”

“The stars?” Neji looked at her strangely.

“They’re unusually bright tonight.”

“Is that so? I never thought to take notice.” Neji attempted to crane his neck to get a good look at the sky, then gave up and simply leaned back, resting on his elbows. 

“Do you see that one above us?” Heiwa pointed to a star, absentmindedly observing how her hand seemed to practically glow in the darkness of night—though that could also have just been her eyes becoming blurry with sleepiness.

“Yes.”

“That’s the largest star in the sky. Many people use it as a form of navigation.”

“Is that so?”

“We may not use the stars much here, as Konoha is landlocked, but it’s common in places such as Uzushio, Nami, or Kiri, where people rely heavily on sailing as their main method of travel.”

Neji grunted in response. Heiwa figured it probably wasn’t a particularly fascinating subject to him.

“Do you look at the stars often?” he asked.

“I study them,” Heiwa corrected him.

He looked over at her. “How do you study the stars?”

“Well, there are books on them. While our knowledge is limited by the technological advances we’ve made so far, stars have always been important to people throughout history. Even in ancient times, people mapped out the stars, named them, and wrote stories about them.”

“I see.”

“They made pictures and symbols out of them too. Look at those two that are close together, then the one below and the group that makes a sort of oval? If you look at it from the side, it resembles a turtle.”

Neji stared up at the cluster of stars, a small frown on his face. “I’m afraid I don’t see how that is an accurate depiction of a turtle.”

Heiwa sighed. “It’s not supposed to look exactly like one. Constellations are more like ideas, or skeletons, and you have to fill in the details with your imagination.”

“. . . I see.”

Feeling something shift next to her, Heiwa looked over to Hinata. Her eyes were closed, her breathing had evened out, and she was curled up slightly in the grass. Sasuke was completely sprawled out next to her, snoring.

“They’re asleep.”

Neji rubbed his temples. “I suppose we’ll have to wake them. It would be impractical for us to carry them both back.”

Heiwa considered Hinata’s peaceful face. “Let’s let them sleep for a bit.” She didn’t think she had the heart to disturb Hinata when she looked so content.

“Fine. Only for a minute,” Neji said, and then paused. “Do you still . . . distrust me?”

Heiwa contemplated the question. He hadn’t done anything to give her a cause for concern yet. He was strict, but so far he hadn’t bullied Hinata, or gone too far during their fights. After a moment, she shook her head. “I don’t distrust you anymore. But I don’t trust you either. You’ll need to do more to earn that.”

“I understand. It would be unreasonable for me to ask so much of you after treating your teammate as I did.”

“Do you care about whether I trust you or not?”

“I care about atoning for my actions.”

Sasuke’s snoring filled the air, and Hinata rolled over onto her other side.

“You said Naruto was the reason you changed?”

“Yes. The things he said to me, and the fact that he was able to beat me despite being so far below my level . . . I realized I was wrong about many things.”

Heiwa scoffed. She found it hard to believe someone like Naruto had the capability to provoke such a profound change in someone.

“After being defeated by him, I confronted my father. I suppose you could say we both changed.”

“I’m glad you did.”

“You are? You don’t seem very pleased to be in my presence most of the time.”

“I’m not. But I’m glad for Hinata’s sake.”

“. . . I understand. You make a good teammate.”

“She’s my friend,” Heiwa corrected.

After a moment of silence, Neji lifted an arm to point towards the sky.

“Can you name all of these stars?” he asked.

“Not all of them. The important ones, yes.”

“Why do you study the stars? I can’t think of any way that would benefit you on a mission.”

“Are missions all that matter to you?” Heiwa continued before he could answer. “I do it to remind myself of the things I don’t yet know, and can’t know, and will likely never know. We are so limited in the things we can do—I will never be able to visit the stars myself, for example—and yet we still strive to understand these things that we can’t reach. And I want to understand everything.”

“You want to understand everything? Is that your goal in life?”

“My goal? No, my goals are more concrete. Understanding is more . . . my purpose.”

Neji said nothing for a long moment, simply staring up at the stars alongside her. “Perhaps that is what I’m still missing,” he said at last. “A purpose.”

He fell silent, shifting slightly, as if made uncomfortable by what he had just said. She wondered if she should change the subject, but he spoke again before she could. “Show me more of those images in the stars. I still don’t see the turtle, but maybe I will understand some of the other ones.”

So Heiwa pointed out all of the constellations she knew, one after another, trying her best to get Neji to see them. At some point, her eyelids became heavy, and she found it difficult to keep her hand up.

The next thing Heiwa knew, she opened her eyes to see the sun peeking out over the horizon. She felt something on top of her and looked—Neji’s white jacket had been draped over her at some point. To her right, she saw Sasuke and Hinata both still fast asleep, Hinata curled up against the boy’s side. To her left, the only remaining trace of Neji was a note.

_ I unfortunately cannot carry all three of you back home. I could not leave you defenseless, so I kept watch until light. I will let your parents know that you are safe in the training grounds. I trust you won’t be late to your mission assignment this morning. We will meet again for training at the same time and place in the evening. Regards, Neji. _

In a corner of the paper, a small doodle of a slightly deformed turtle was drawn.

Too surprised to stop herself, Heiwa laughed loudly enough to wake up Hinata and Sasuke. 

Maybe Neji wasn’t as bad as she had thought. 


	47. Interlude: Year 1, Part 2

Sakura gripped her hands behind her back as she waited for the verdict. In front of her, Tsubame Uzumaki surveyed her latest work, occasionally making notes on a spare scroll. A bead of sweat trickled down the back of her neck. 

At last, Tsubame rolled up the scroll and handed it to her. Sakura gulped and met his eyes. 

He gave her a slight smile. “Well done. Now we test it. Come, I’ll take you to requisitions.” 

Tsubame swept from the room without another word. Sakura scrambled after him, the unfamiliar weight of her training sword awkwardly bumping against her thigh. She didn’t need to ask where they were going; the path to Uzushio’s hospital was now as familiar to her as the streets of Konoha. 

Research requisitions occupied a small office in the back of the hospital, crammed between two storage rooms. As they approached, a woman ran out of the room, clutching a jar of blue eyeballs. Sakura shuddered; research requisitions gave her the creeps. 

Tsubame seemed as at home there as he did everywhere else, of course, talking casually to the starry-eyed receptionist as she filled out forms for him. Usually Sakura found it amusing how half the village seemed to be in love with Tsubame, but right now she was kind of distracted by how another jar of eyeballs seemed to be staring right at her. How many jars of eyeballs did one village need, anyways? 

“Sakura. We’re going.” 

Sakura jumped to attention and hurried after Tsubame. “But you didn’t get anything.” 

“It will be waiting for us in one of the testing rooms,” Tsubame said. “They aren’t stored in the requisitions room itself.” 

“That makes sense,” Sakura murmured, nervously clutching at her scroll. Her first medical seal that Tsubame had actually approved for testing. Medical fuuinjutsu was just as complicated and interesting as she had hoped, and even after several months of studying under Tsubame, she knew she still had a lot to learn. Right now, though, she just hoped this worked. 

Tsubame led the way through the hallways to a small room. They put on the proper gear and sterilized their hands, since that was the proper procedure even if they weren’t doing an actual surgery, and then Sakura followed him into the room. 

She stopped short upon entering. It smelled worse than she had imagined, the scent of the preservatives so strong that it gave her a headache. At least they had left a sheet covering the body’s face; Sakura was having a hard time approaching the body as it was. If she was able to see his face, she might have actually passed out. 

Tsubame was watching her, his face impassive. Sakura forced herself to step forward, standing on the other side of the operation table. 

Without further ado, Tsubame took a scalpel and cut right through the body’s stomach. Sakura tried very hard not to throw up. 

“Draw the seal,” Tsubame said. 

Sakura’s hand shook as she took out her sealing equipment. She didn’t even want to take a deep breath to steady herself, with how terrible the room smelled. Her first line turned out wobbly, but she tried her best to correct it as she continued to draw the seal around the cut. 

By the time she finished, she felt slightly woozy. Wanting to get it over with, she pressed her hands to the seal and channeled her chakra through it. The seal lit up. For a few moments, nothing happened, but then the flesh began to knit together, starting from the inside. The skin was the last to heal, leaving nothing but a thin, pink scar. 

Sakura stared at it for a moment. 

“Well done,” Tsubame said. 

Sakura breathed out and then, horribly, made the mistake of breathing in. She gagged, choking on the foul smell, and clasped a hand to her mouth. She turned away from the body, but that didn’t make things any better; whenever she breathed in, her stomach rebelled. 

A container was shoved into Sakura’s arms just in time for her to vomit. 

Tentatively, a hand touched her back, before quickly pulling away. They settled again on her shoulders, gently leading her out of the room and into the hallway before vanishing again. 

“I’ll . . . get you something to drink,” Tsubame said. 

Once out of the room, her stomach settled quickly enough. She still felt queasy, but not like she needed to heave out her guts. The bucket of vomit wasn’t making her feel any better, but she wasn’t sure what to do with it, either. 

Thankfully, a passing nurse noticed her uncertainty and took the bucket, only leaving once Sakura assured him that she was fine and that Tsubame would be coming back soon. He returned not long after the nurse left, holding a green bottle in one hand and a bottle of water in the other. 

“Ginger ale. I prefer it for settling the stomach and getting rid of the taste,” he said, offering it to her. After a moment, he held out the water as well. “I wasn’t sure if you would prefer water.” 

“Ginger ale is good. Thanks.” Tsubame opened the bottle before handing it over. Slowly, Sakura sipped from it. “That smelled worse than I thought it would.” 

“You get used to it,” he said. 

“That’s not really reassuring.” 

“It is what it is.” 

Sakura sipped from the ginger ale. Tsubame opened the water bottle and sipped from it. “Are we going to do that . . . every time?” 

Tsubame raised an eyebrow at her. “Would you rather test your seals on a live human being?” 

Sakura shuddered, her mind immediately going to all the ways that could go horribly wrong. “No, this way is fine.” 

“Your seal turned out well. I had expected that it would—it is similar to the one that I developed,” he said. “I’ll give you your next assignment later. For now, go home and clean up.” 

“Thanks, Shishou,” she said. “Will you be home for dinner?” 

“I’ll be working late today,” he said, already turning and walking down the hallway. “You can tell that to my wife, as well.” 

Still sipping at the ginger ale, Sakura made her way out of the hospital. She began to feel better as soon as she was out of the hospital and back in the fresh sea air. Uzushio was warm in the fall, but it was a pleasant warmth, as opposite to the sticky heat of summer. Combined with the ocean breeze, it was the kind of weather that she would have gladly spent all day in. Right now, though, she wanted to get home and take a bath; she was pretty sure the hospital smell was sticking to her clothes. 

She’d been staying with Tsubame at the main house in the Uzumaki compound. It wasn’t much of a compound, really, since there weren’t any walls or anything, but most of the Uzumaki in the village tended to live close to that area. Tsubame’s house was the largest, with a large central room that was occasionally used to host dinners for the whole Uzumaki clan, all crammed together at several long tables. Right now, though, Sakura didn’t anticipate more than a few people being home. 

“I’m home,” she called as she entered the house, remembering only a little too late to look up. 

Su, Tsubame’s other apprentice and his successor as Uzukage, made a few signs with their hands once they were certain she was looking. “ _ Welcome home. Is Shishou with you? _ ” __

“No,” she said. “He said he was working late. Is Shiomi-san home?” 

Su shrugged, which was answer enough even if she wasn’t completely sure what they said with their hands. Her knowledge of the Uzushio sign language was a work in progress. 

Su followed it up with something about the bath. 

“The . . . bath is open?” she said, basing her guess on Su’s damp hair. Su nodded, and repeated the signs. 

“Thanks,” Sakura said. “We tested out a seal today. It smelled worse than I thought.” 

Su signed something else that she didn’t understand, and then, a small, childish grin on their face, mimed puking. Sakura grimaced. “Don’t remind me. I’m going to go take a bath now.” 

Tsubame’s bathtub was amazing, easily large enough to fit several grown adults comfortably, and Sakura couldn’t wait to take a nice, long soak. To her surprise, though, the bath wasn’t empty. “Oh. Shiomi-san.” 

Tsubame’s wife, already sitting in the bath, met her eyes. 

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude,” Sakura said, taking a step back.

“It’s alright,” Shiomi said. “You’re welcome to join me.” 

Sakura gave her a polite nod and went to wash up, rushing through the motions so that she could get to soaking in the tub. Shiomi, clearly content to soak, didn’t move at all, even when Sakura finished washing up and got in the tub to soak as well. 

It had been a little weird for her at first, bathing with someone else; Sakura’s house had been more modern, with a bathtub meant for one person. She’d been to the hot springs a few times with Ino and her other friends, however, so she’d decided to just treat it like that. Not that she often bathed with other people, even at Tsubame’s house; she didn’t come across Shiomi all that much. 

Sakura wasn’t really sure what to make of Tsubame’s wife. Shiomi didn’t really say much to Sakura, and Sakura only ever really saw her at meals. She looked much older than Tsubame. Tsubame looked like he was only in his thirties, although she wasn’t really sure how old he was exactly, while she would have put Shiomi somewhere in her fifties or sixties. She never smiled, and always seemed to regard the goings-on of the household with a cool distance. 

Right now, however, Shiomi gave her a small smile. “It’s quite nice, having company. My sisters and I used to bathe together.” 

“I don’t have any siblings,” Sakura said. “Did you have many, Shiomi-san?” 

“Three sisters. One of them was married to a rich merchant, who became the Daimyo of Nami by marrying her. The other two were married off for political gain, as I was.” 

“O-oh,” Sakura said. She wasn’t really sure she wanted to pry into the details of Shiomi’s marriage, and looked for something more innocuous to ask about. “You’re from Nami?” 

“I was,” Shiomi said. “Many, many years ago. I was only . . . Oh, I must have been only twenty-five when I was married for the sake of an alliance between our countries.” 

Sakura fought hard to keep her eyes from widening. If Shiomi had married Tsubame when she was only twenty-five, either she was younger than Sakura had thought, or Tsubame had been a very young husband indeed. 

“Tsubame was only eighteen at the time,” Shiomi continued. Sakura tried not to let her jaw drop. Shiomi did not look like a woman in her thirties or forties. Sakura hoped very much that she didn’t age like Shiomi had. 

“Ah . . . when was this?” Sakura asked.

“It must have been . . . some time ago,” Shiomi said, closing her eyes. “I thought I was so lucky, marrying the Prince of the Uzumaki. And a war hero, too.” 

“A . . . war hero?” Sakura said. “The . . . third shinobi war?” 

“No, no,” she said. “The second one.” 

“But that was . . . that was thirty years ago!” There was absolutely no way that Tsubame was almost fifty. 

Shiomi laughed. “Had you fooled with his pretty face, did he? Yes, he’s forty-eight this year.” 

Sakura stared at the ceiling. “I think my worldview was just shattered. I can’t believe he’s almost fifty. But that makes sense . . . I think in the Academy we learned about a treaty between Uzushio and Nami. Was that when you got married?” 

“Yes, it must have been,” she said, staring into the distance. “I had thought myself so lucky. I should have known it would end badly. I’d already had one marriage ruined. I was meant to be married ten years before, to Tsubame’s brother.” She laughed, but this time it had a cruel tinge to it. “My apologies—to his  _ sister _ . I refused the marriage, threw quite a tantrum until my father gave me my way. I should have taken what I was first offered.” 

Sakura shifted awkwardly, and wondered if it would be too rude to leap out of the bath to escape from the conversation. 

“Instead, this is what I ended up with. A husband younger than me, more beautiful than me, and not attracted to women in the least. And he wouldn’t even do me the courtesy of having an affair!” 

That settled it. Sakura was done. 

She stood so quickly she felt dizzy, and nearly leapt out of the bath. “Sorry, Shiomi-san, I think I soaked for too long. I’m still expected back at the hospital.” 

“Of course. You shinobi, always working,” Shiomi said, actually sounding rather sad that Sakura was leaving. “I suppose I’ve soaked for long enough, as well.” 

Sakura got dressed and made her escape before Shiomi entered the changing room, leaving the compound before anyone had a chance to stop her. She was not about to be trapped in another horrible conversation. 

Fueled by the lingering distaste from the conversation, Sakura reached the hospital in record time, even with a brief stop to pick up dinner from a restaurant Tsubame liked. 

“Oh, Sakura-san,” the receptionist said as she entered. “Tsubame-sama is in his office, if you’re looking for him.” 

“Thank you,” Sakura called, as she headed to the stairs. Tsubame’s office was on the top floor, on the corner of the building so that he had two windows overlooking the sea. The door was ajar, but Sakura knocked on the door before nudging it open. 

Tsubame looked up, surprised. Sakura held up the takeout boxes. “I brought dinner for you. Mind if I join you?” 

“Ah, thank you. Of course, let me make you some room,” he said, quickly moving aside the scrolls covering his desk. “I was just working on a chakra regulating seal for a regular patient of mine—it’s quite an unusual seal, you might find it interesting.” 

“It does sound interesting,” she said. “I haven’t studied the chakra system all that much.” 

“It’s a fascinating topic,” he said. 

Sakura grinned at him as she snapped the wooden chopsticks apart. “Admit it. You think everything is a fascinating topic.” 

“Guilty as charged,” he said. “I have some thoughts on your next project: a seal meant to mend broken bones.” 

Sakura chewed her noodles thoughtfully. “So, kind of like the one I just did, which mended flesh, but a little bit different, right?” 

“Essentially,” he said. 

Already, thoughts were flowing into Sakura’s head. She pushed her noodles aside slightly to make room for a blank scroll, and started sketching out the preliminary design. Tsubame watched her in between eating his own dinner and working on his seals. 

Tsubame was a much different mentor than Narumi had been; Narumi had given out compliments and advice freely, while Tsubame watched her silently and only rarely gave her advice, usually preferring to let her struggle through a problem on her own. At first she had thought that he disliked her and was only doing this as a favor until he could get rid of her, but over the past months she had come to realize that that was just how he was. She was even starting to think she might prefer Tsubame’s hands-off methods. 

Even if they did involve testing seals on dead bodies. 

***

Shinobi weren’t the usual customers of the blacksmith’s shop. Most of their customers were guards at the daimyo’s palace, seeing new blades or new armor or maintenance for their existing equipment. Sometimes, they got chefs seeking custom sets of knives, or requests for unusual parts from university students working on various projects—Kintsugi always found those particularly interesting. 

So, shinobi weren’t particularly common. But they did show up, now and then. 

Sometimes, they didn’t belong to a village. Kintsugi didn’t mind them so much. Most of them didn’t want to draw too much attention to themselves, and were in and out quickly, paying for their purchases without making a fuss about the price. Other times, they were from a village outside of Hi no Kuni, there on official business. They tended to be a little irritable, but Kintsugi couldn’t blame them for that. It was hard, being in a strange country on your own. Most of the time, they were from Konoha, passing through the Capital on diplomatic business or on their way to or from a mission. Some of them were angry, some of them cheerful, and some of them just wanted to get their shopping done and go home. Kintsugi didn’t care about any of that, so long as they paid their bills. 

But then were the ones wearing masks. 

Not literal masks, although he’d seen a few of those, passing by in the night, the ones his brothers used to tell stories about to scare him. 

No, these were the ones whose faces never reflected what they were feeling. They smiled, but it didn’t reach their eyes. They laughed, but it was hollow. Those were the ones that could snap at any minute, the ones that would look at a bill and say, “Oh, that’s a little pricy, isn’t it?” before pulling out a weapon. Those were the ones you had to watch out for. 

When the kid in the purple sweater walked through the door, Kintsugi didn’t think much of it at first. Curious kids wandered in all the time, wanting a look at the swords and the small stash of ninja gear they kept just in case a shinobi came through wanting to buy something. 

Still, he didn't have all day to babysit. "Can I help you, miss?" 

The kid looked at him, surprised, and then smiled widely. It was a good smile—made the corners of the eyes crinkle up and everything. But it didn't change how a shiver went down Kintsugi’s spin when he looked in those eyes, as black and deep as the night and just as cold. 

Kintsugi knew without even having to search for a headband that the kid was a shinobi. That this was one of the ones to be wary of. 

When Kintsugi asked for an ID for the purchases, he was honestly prepared for the kid to stab him and make a break for it. Being presented with a Konoha ID—a legitimate one, even—was a pleasant turn of events. 

The kid was named Minori Hatake. A chuunin, which was one of those shinobi ranks Kintsugi didn't bother keeping track of. A boy, at least according to the card. One year younger than Kintsugi, and apparently trying out for the Twelve Guardians. 

He'd thought it was a joke, but despite himself he'd been curious, and had gone to the palace to see the kid actually lined up with the other shinobi. He looked like he was about to be eaten for breakfast. Kinstugi didn't expect much of him, and figured he probably wouldn't even see the kid again. 

Then, two weeks after meeting him for the first time, the bell above the shop rang and Minori walked in, this time wearing shinobi gear with a scarf denoting him as a member of the Twelve Guardians wrapped around his waist. 

Minori grinned, and it didn't reach his eyes.

"Heya, Kin-chan!" he said. 

" _ What _ did you call me?" Kintsugi said. 

It was the start of . . . something. A friendship, maybe, if not for the fact that Kintsugi still didn't trust Minori as far as he could throw him. Still, he wasn't about to tell the possibly crazy ninja who had latched onto him to buzz off, so Kintsugi let him stick around. 

Despite himself and despite Minori, Kintsugi began to learn about him. 

The first thing was that Minori didn't know a single thing about living in the city. He'd never been to a department store before. He'd never seen an automobile in person—and Kintsugi hadn't seen many either, but at least he knew better than to go running into traffic like an idiot. He never brought enough money to buy lunch because he expected everything to be half as expensive as it was. Kintsugi's mother kept asking if he had a girlfriend because of all the money he was spending, all to fund Minori's desire for crepes after they finished their lunch. 

That was kind of related to the second thing. Minori didn't dress the way he did for a weird shinobi reason, but just because he liked it. He liked bright colors. He liked cute things. He liked sweet things, and hated bitter things. He wouldn't go within a block of a place selling natto, claiming that the smell made him want to vomit. Kintsugi couldn't smell anything from that far away, but shinobi were weird like that. 

Then there was the third thing. Kintsugi had thought, at first, that all of Minori’s smiles were only skin deep, until he saw Minori’s eyes light up with delight when he passed by a small shop selling candies shaped like flowers, the type that melted in your mouth when you ate them. 

Minori had grabbed onto Kintsugi’s arm without a second thought to pull him to a stop. “Kin-chan, look!” he’d exclaimed. “Me and Ino used to eat those all the time. Wow, that feels like forever ago.” 

The smile left his eyes, and that was when Kintsugi realized the third thing. 

Minori was running from something. 

Kintsugi didn’t know what. He knew enough about shinobi to know that he probably didn’t want to know what. But even just knowing that third thing was enough to make Minori feel more real, and less like a plastic doll. 

Shinobi were trouble—Kintsugi knew that. But that didn’t stop him from searching out every instance of genuine emotion Minori showed, marking down each instance in an ever-growing mental list, as if someday someone would ask him to provide evidence of Minori’s emotions.

Things that made Minori happy: snakes. Dogs. Clothing with fun patterns. Sweets with pretty decorations. Cute shinobi gear. The face Kintsugi made when he ate something sour. 

Things that made Minori sad: children with their parents. Homemade bento boxes. Sweets that reminded him of . . . something. 

Things that made Minori angry: being tricked into eating the spicy takoyaki. 

That last list was still a work in progress. 

Minori showed happiness the most easily of all; some days were good days, when his smiles were genuine, and some days were bad days, when his smiles were false and Kintsugi had to search for the real emotion behind them. 

When the door swung open and Minori gave him a bright, cheerful smile and an accompanying greeting, Kintsugi knew immediately that it was a bad day, even before Minori placed his naginata on the table. 

The naginata had been split in half, right in the middle of the shaft. Kintsugi picked up the half with the blade to examine it. “You chipped the blade,” he said. 

Minori laughed. “Whoops! I think I got a little too enthusiastic in my training today.” 

A lie. 

Kintsugi picked up the other half of the shaft to examine it. “You’ll need a new shaft,” he said. “I think I have some in the back that are almost ready. One of them might fit you. Come on.” 

Minori blinked at him. The surprise was genuine. “Eh? I can come back with you?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “Shishou isn’t in the ‘shop today. We’re supposed to be closed, but I didn’t have anything better to do. You can keep me company while I fix you up.” 

This time, Minori’s smile was smaller. More real. “Thanks, Kin-chan.” 

Kintsugi held open the door for him. He’d have to sharpen the blade to get all the nicks out, and that would take a while, as would finishing up the shaft. He had a shaft that he thought would work for Minori, but it still needed to be sanded and polished and gussied up and all that crap. Shishou would kill him if Kintsugi stamped their name on an inferior product. 

Kintsugi didn’t know how to gussy things up yet. Usually Shishou took care of that part. Minori would just have to deal. 

Kinstugi pulled over a stool and brushed off the stray wood and metal shavings. “You can sit here while you wait. It might be a little while.” 

“Thanks! I’ve always wanted to see a blacksmith at work,” Minori said cheerfully, as he took his seat. 

He must not have been on duty today—he wasn’t wearing his gear, but leggings and furry boots and a big sweater that had an ugly bear standing in a snowy landscape on the front. Minori would probably say the bear was cute. 

_ WELCOME TO TETSU _ , the shirt said. 

“Have you ever been?” Kintsugi asked, as he set to sharpening the blade. 

“Huh?” Minori said. Kintsugi nodded at his shirt. “Oh! No, I haven’t. It belongs to my papa. But it does sound like an interesting place to visit! Do you want to go there?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “If they had interesting blacksmithing techniques, maybe.” 

“Is there anywhere you do want to go?” 

“Konoha,” Kintsugi said. “There are a lot of famous blacksmiths there.” 

“Oh. That’s nice!” Minori said. 

He didn’t actually think it was nice. Kintsugi could tell by the look in his eyes; not a single one of his smiles had been genuine since he’d walked through the front door. That was a new record, even for Minori. 

“What’s bugging you?” Kintsugi said. 

“What makes you think something’s bugging me?” Minori laughed. 

“You didn’t just break this by being overly enthusiastic,” Kintsugi said. “So, what’s bugging you?” 

“Nothing’s bugging me, Kin-chan,” Minori said, still smiling. 

Kintsugi examined the blade, picking out the few remaining nicks. “You don’t have to tell me, if you don’t want to. But you don’t have to lie about it, either.” 

He went back to sharpening the blade. For a few moments, the only sound in the room was the screech of metal against stone. 

“What should I say, then?” Minori said, so quietly Kintsugi almost didn’t hear him. 

“You could just say, ‘I don’t want to talk about it,’”

“And you’d listen to that?” 

“I would.” 

“Then,” Minori said, his voice breaking, “I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Okay,” Kintsugi said. 

Minori sniffled. Kintsugi pretended not to hear. 

Kintsugi continued to sharpen the blade until he was satisfied, and then set it aside to pick out one of the many partially completed shafts leaning against the wall. One of them was about the same size and weight as Minori’s old one. 

“How’s this?” Kintsugi asked, handing him the shaft. Minori hefted it in one hand, then stood it upwards to see how it compared to his height before nodding and handing it back. Kintsugi fished out a piece of sandpaper and got to work. 

Minori sat on the stool, watching. 

“I’m signing up for the jounin exams,” Minori said, abruptly. 

Kintsugi knew about exams. He supposed that explained part of Minori’s odd behavior; stress did strange things to people. The youngest of his older brothers was studying engineering at the university, and simply walking past his room too loudly got you snapped at when he was in the middle of studying for his exams. 

He did not know what a jounin was. 

“That’s a shinobi thing, I guess,” Kintsugi said. 

Minori giggled, surprised. “Oh—yeah, it’s the next rank, the one above mine. I’m only a chuunin.” 

Chuunin, Kintsugi supposed, must have been the lowest rank. “Good luck,” he said. “Are the exams in the Capital?” 

“No, they’re in Konoha,” Minori said, an odd tone to his voice. 

Kintsugi looked up, pausing in his work for the moment. Minori smiled when he realized Kintsugi was watching him, but not before their eyes met and Kintsugi recognized the emotion there. 

Minori was afraid. 

Kintsugi looked at the shaft; it was still only half-sanded. 

“Do you need this today?” Kintsugi asked. 

Minori blinked; his eyes were blank again, but Kintsugi knew what he had seen. “Oh, no. Not for a little while. I’d like to train with it before the exams in January.” 

“I can get it to you in a couple days,” Kintsugi said. He set the shaft aside, attaching a note for his father to see in the morning. “Let’s get some air.” 

The sharp, cold winter air was a shock after being in the heat of the workshop all day. Kintsugi tucked his hands into his pockets and walked down the street, Minori keeping pace at his side. There was a stand nearby selling hot taiyaki, which Minori was a fan of, so Kintsugi stopped there and pulled out his wallet. “I’ll have a savory one,” he told the vendor. “Minori, chocolate or red bean paste?” 

“Red bean paste,” Minori said. 

The vendor wrapped their treats in paper and handed them over. Kintsugi continued down the street, leading the way to the nearby park. It was too cold for most people to be out, even on a weekend, so the park was quiet but for the crunching of their footsteps through the snow. Usually Minori liked to talk while they walked, but this time he was silent as he ate his taiyaki. Even once he finished his taiyaki, he didn’t say anything. 

Kintsugi waited. 

Eventually, they reached the large duck pond in the middle of the park. It was completely frozen, no ducks in sight, and a few laughing kids were skidding across the ice. Minori smiled when he saw them—a genuine smile, this time. 

Minori’s eyes slid towards Kintsugi, catching him looking. Kintsugi quickly looked away. 

“They remind me of my teammates,” Minori said, nodding towards the kids. “We used to do stuff like that all the time.” 

“You had teammates?” Kintsugi asked. Most of the shinobi he had seen had all been alone. 

“Mm, two of them, and our sensei. We went on missions together.”

“Like, protecting princesses or whatever?” 

Minori laughed, and Kintsugi hid his smile in his scarf. “You really don’t know much about shinobi, do you?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “Never needed to. I know how to take care of their weapons.” 

Minori’s eyes were alight with mirth. “Do you even know what a jounin is?” 

“A ranking, I guess.” 

“And a chuunin?”

“That’s below jounin.” 

“Genin?” 

“There’s a rank called genin? I don’t know, is it above jounin?” 

Minori laughed. “And the Hokage, do you know who the Hokage is?” 

“He’s like the shinobi daimyo, right?” Kintsugi shrugged. “I don’t know his name or anything, if that’s what you’re asking.” 

Minori shrieked with laughter. “The shinobi daimyo! The Hokage is the shinobi daimyo!” 

Kintsugi bumped Minori with his elbow. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up.” 

“I intend to!” 

Eventually, Minori’s laughter subsided into quiet giggles, and then silence. He stretched his arms up, reaching towards the sky, and took a few steps forward. He stepped onto the pond, pushing off against the ground to make himself slide across the ice. 

“You’re going to get stuck out there,” Kintsugi said. 

“I don’t want to go home,” Minori said. 

Kintsugi fell silent, listening. 

Minori’s foot scraped against the ice. “There were . . . some things that happened before I left. And some things that I did, that make it hard to go back. But I think I feel a little better about it now.” 

Minori turned, and his smile was broad, and genuine, and as blinding as the sun. “So, thanks. Kintsugi.” 

****

Sasuke still wasn’t used to wearing the chuunin vest. Granted, he had only passed the exams a week ago; Tenten, who had joined their team for the event, had passed as well, while Hinata had not. It hadn’t been a surprise. The moment she had been paired up against Sasuke in the first round of eliminations, Sasuke knew she wasn’t going to pass. He was surprised that Hinata had fought him as seriously as she had, actually, although in the end she had failed to carry through on a few openings that he knew he had given her. 

Hinata was going to pass the January exams. In the meantime, Sasuke would have to join the Military Police by himself. 

The process was familiar to him; he had often helped with the paperwork for new recruits while interning with them as a genin. And, being an Uchiha, Sasuke knew that he had it easier than most. The Military Police was open to anyone now, but most of the existing members were still Uchiha, and all of them knew Sasuke. Most of the time, that just meant he was compared to Itachi, but in this case it meant that the interview and testing process was basically a formality. 

He walked out of the building with an altered chuunin vest, bearing the emblem of the Military Police on the shoulders instead of the Uzushio spiral, to find his team waiting for him. 

Obito waved cheerfully, his typical, annoying smile on his face. “Congratulations, Sasuke! What do you want for lunch? My treat.” 

Sasuke shrugged. He didn’t really care what they had for lunch; most of the restaurants around Konoha weren’t to his taste. He preferred home cooked meals, to be perfectly honest. 

“U-um, maybe we could have lunch at your house, Sensei?” 

Sasuke looked at Hinata, mildly surprised that she had spoken up. Hinata almost never spoke up when they were making choices about where to eat. 

Obito blinked at her for a moment. “My house? Uh, yeah, sure. If that’s okay with Sasuke.” 

“Whatever is fine,” Sasuke said. 

“Great!” Obito said. “Supermarket time! I haven’t gone grocery shopping this week, haha.” 

Sasuke never went to the supermarket for himself; he only ever went to the supermarket for D-ranks, and then he had a specific grocery list to follow. Without that, he wasn’t entirely sure what to do other than follow Obito as he made a beeline to the produce section. Hinata and Heiwa, thankfully, also didn’t seem to have any ideas on what they were meant to pick out, as they followed Obito as well. 

“Tomatoes, of course,” Obito said, placing a container of them into the basket. He paused, and then picked out another container. “Probably some more. Let’s see, I think we were out of miso . . . Heiwa, could you go find miso? Oh, and some soy sauce. Hinata, some fruit for dessert. Maybe a melon! It’s a celebration, after all. Sasuke, come with me to pick out meat.” 

Sasuke followed Obito to the area of the supermarket where they sold meat and fish. The two of them stared at the meat. Sasuke had absolutely no idea what made one piece of meat better than another; usually when he was in charge of getting meat, he just went with whatever the person serving him chose. 

“Chicken sound good?” At Sasuke’s nod, Obito went up to the counter and grabbed a ticket. “A bit of a wait,” Obito noted, glancing up at the number currently displayed. “So, when do you start with the police?” 

“Next week,” Sasuke said. “Just training.” 

“Ah, Team Eight’s breaking up,” Obito sighed. “Heiwa’s moved on to the Sandaime and a chuunin squad, you’ve moved on to the Military Police . . . Hinata’s the only genin I have left, and that’ll only be for six months, if I know the two of you.” 

Sasuke shrugged. Hinata had mentioned wanting to keep training with Obito even after she became a chuunin, but Sasuke wasn’t sure if she wanted that mentioned to Obito yet. 

“I’m proud of you, Sasuke.” 

Sasuke jerked his head up. Obito smiled fondly down at him. “You’ve grown a lot.” 

Sasuke looked away. “Not really.” 

At his age, Itachi had joined the ANBU, been appointed captain, left the ANBU, and become an apprentice to one of the most respected jounin in the village. Sasuke, meanwhile, had become a chuunin and joined the Military Police. He was at the expected level of an Uchiha shinobi his age, at best. Even Heiwa, who was on his own team, had achieved more than him—she was apprenticed to the Sandaime, and had passed the chuunin exams a full six months earlier. While he’d been training with Obito and Hinata, she had been going on C-ranks and B-ranks. 

Sasuke was falling behind. 

Obito tousled his hair, and Sasuke, scowling, smacked his hand away. “No need to look so tense,” Obito laughed. “Don’t worry about what other people are doing. Just focus on yourself. People grow at different rates, Sasuke, and different goals have different paths. You want to take over the Military Police, don’t you?” 

Reluctantly, Sasuke nodded. He was a little surprised Obito even remembered something Sasuke had only said once, over a year ago. 

“So, Heiwa’s going on missions with lots of different people so that she can get to know more people in the village, which is an important part of becoming Hokage,” Obito said. “And you’re going through all the training with the Military Police because that’s a necessary part of taking over eventually. And you’re going to work more with your mom too, right?” 

It hadn’t even occurred to Sasuke that his mother might let him help her in her capacity as the head of the Military Police, since she reigned their household with an iron fist and refused any help there. Still, he nodded, because Obito had a good point there. Sasuke was sure his mother could do with an assistant. 

Obito’s hand settled on his head. Sasuke prepared to bat him away again, but the tone of Obito’s voice stopped him. 

“Don’t . . . try to grow up too fast.” 

Before Sasuke could respond, the number displayed on the counter ticked over. Obito walked over to the counter, pointing out a few cuts of chicken breast in particular and laughing at something the server said, as if he hadn’t sounded like the weight of the world was pressing down on his shoulders only moments before. 

If Obito had wanted to make Sasuke think, he’d succeeded. The words rattled around in Sasuke’s head all through dinner and followed him out the door when he left with Heiwa and Hinata. Heiwa split from the group first, heading to the Senju compound with promises to train together the next day, while Hinata and Sasuke continued in the same direction. 

“I-is something bothering you, Sasuke-kun?” Hinata asked, tentatively. 

“Nothing. Just something Obito said.” 

“Oh. Well, if you want . . . you can tell me?” 

Sasuke supposed that Hinata was closer to Obito than he was, so he told her of the brief conversation in the supermarket. Even if she couldn’t offer any insight, it wasn’t like he had anything to lose. 

Hinata pressed her fingers together. “Oh, well, I think that maybe . . . Obito-sensei is sad about Minori.” 

Sasuke stared at her blankly. “Why? Minori’s one of the Twelve Guardians. He’s the most successful out of all of us. He’s probably going to end up as the Hokage after Shisui at this rate.” 

“Um, well, I think that Obito-sensei would prefer that, instead of successful, Minori was . . . happy . . .” Hinata said, her voice trailing off into a whisper. 

“Minori is always happy,” Sasuke said. “That’s what makes him so annoying.” 

“If you think that, then . . . maybe you don’t pay enough attention.” 

Sasuke stopped in his tracks and stared at her. Hinata had stopped as well, looking just as stunned as he felt. 

Hinata had never criticized him before. 

A blush rising to her cheeks, Hinata quickly waved her hands as if to sweep away everything she had just said. “U-um, I didn’t mean—” 

“No,” Sasuke said, continuing on their walk. “You’re right.” 

She’d never criticized him before, but for some reason, Sasuke found that he wished she would do it more. 

Hinata’s footsteps tapped against the street. Sasuke slowed down so that they were walking side-by-side. Eventually, Hinata stopped and pointed down the street leading to the Hyuuga compound. “Um, I have to go this way . . .” 

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Sasuke said. He took a few steps towards the Uchiha compound, but then stopped. “And. You shouldn’t worry about criticizing me, or whatever.” 

“O-oh, I wasn’t trying to—” 

“It’s fine,” he said, glancing over his shoulder at Hinata. She looked absolutely mortified. “You should do it more. I can’t get stronger without people telling me where I have to improve.” 

Hinata swallowed and then nodded resolutely. “I-I will. I promise.” 

“Good. See you tomorrow.” With that, Sasuke set off towards the Uchiha compound. The night was still young; he had plenty of time to get some more training in. 


	48. Interlude: Year 1, Part 3

The chuunin exams were a major event, with crowds showing up in droves to watch and the daimyo and kage attending as well, to the point that they had a special stadium built just for the exams. Genin who were taking the exams usually bragged about it the moment they signed up, both to find out who else was competing and to rub it in the faces of their peers who weren’t. 

The jounin exams were another matter entirely. People didn’t really talk about when they were taking the jounin exams, mostly to avoid gossip. There weren’t any fights between the competitors, so they didn’t really have to worry about the competition scoping them out, but there was a betting scene that some people preferred to avoid. No one really watched the jounin exams, either, other than the Hokage and the jounin proctoring the exam. Not even the daimyo attended them. 

So, Minori set off for Konoha alone, seen off by the other Twelve Guardians. He didn’t really mind it, being alone. Kenta and Sachi, two of the guardians he was usually put on a team with, tended to be a bit annoying. Minori wanted to focus on preparing for the exams without being distracted by their constant bickering. And this way, Minori didn’t bother anyone with his nightmares. 

He’d had months free of nightmares, but they’d started up again the moment he’d signed up for the exams, blood-soaked dreams that had him waking up in a cold sweat every night. He’d ended up spending most of the nights before he left training. Now that he was on the road, he walked through the night, occasionally taking breaks to force down a ration bar and some of the snacks the other Guardians had given him when he left. 

With Kamui, he could have reached Konoha instantly; it would take some of his chakra, yes, but it wasn’t as if he was heading straight to the exams upon arrival. 

But he didn’t want to. 

He walked along the road to Konoha, taking his time. Dragging his feet, some would say, but it was hard to keep moving when the thought of being in Konoha again made cold sweat drip down his spine. 

He ended up lingering in a town on the way, so that by the time he arrived in Konoha he really did have to head right to the exams, unless he wanted to keep being the only chuunin in the Twelve Guardians. 

“Hey, it’s the baby guardian!” one of the guards said as Minori approached. “What brings you back? Did you get fired already?” 

“Nope!” Minori said, holding out his ID card for them to examine. 

“So, why are you here?” 

“It’s a secret!” Minori declared. “If you can figure it out, I’ll give you a prize!” 

One of the gate guards looked at the other. “I think the twelve-year-old is trying to patronize us, Kotetsu.” 

Minori puffed out his cheeks irritably. “Fourteen! Fourteen!” 

“Did you hear something, Izumo?” 

“A little gnat, maybe?” 

Minori huffed and snatched back his ID. “Fine, then I won’t tell you, and you can suffer in your ignorance forever.” 

Laughing, they waved him into the village. Minori walked through the gates and forced himself to keep moving. He’d gotten used to not being in the village. He wasn’t sure how he felt about being back. 

His heart beat in his chest, too fast, too loud. 

Minori kept moving. 

The first part of the exam was held in the administration building. All told, there were only fifteen people taking the exam, none of them people he knew. Minori wasn’t worried about the first part; it was only a written test, and he’d always been good at those. This test wasn’t much harder than the one on the chuunin exam. Some calculus and physics, a strategy scenario, a code to decipher. Simple things. 

It was the second and third parts that he couldn’t stop thinking about, considering each and every thing that could go wrong. 

The second part of the test took part outside of the village for the most part, but first Minori was escorted to a briefing room, where he would meet the ‘chuunin’ assigned to him for the exam. None of them were actually chuunin, of course—they were all jounin proctoring the exam, who would grade him based on how well he led the team. Minori expected—hoped—that they would all be people he didn’t know. 

The moment he opened the door, he was greeted with an enthusiastic yell. “Yeah! We got the Hatake kid!” Hana Inuzuka whooped, throwing an arm around Izumi Uchiha’s shoulders. One of the three dogs at Hana’s side barked loudly. 

“Oh, hell yes!” Anko exclaimed from her precarious perch on top of a chair tilted on its back legs. “This is gonna be a blast.” 

The final person in the room gave Minori a cheerful salute. “Hey there, baby cousin.” 

Shisui grinned at Minori, and Minori grinned back, pushing aside the false memories of all the times Shisui had stabbed his tanto into Minori’s heart. “Hi, everyone!” 

A door at the other end of the room opened to admit Ibiki Morino. “Okay, settle down!” he barked. “And listen up, because I’m only saying this once.” 

Minori glanced around the room; Hana and Anko were making a show of not listening, so he would probably have to rebrief them later. 

“Your mission is a simple retrieval,” Ibiki said. “A certain scroll has been stolen from the village, and your job is to get it back. Minor opposition is expected. Questions?” 

Minori chewed on his lower lip. Usually the mission briefings they got were a lot more detailed, so he was probably expected to ask questions. “Where is the scroll being kept?”

“In a cave that’s been converted into a stronghold,” Ibiki said. 

“What kind of opposition do we expect?” 

“Specify.” 

“Um, how many enemies, and how many of them are shinobi?” 

“Ten enemies, all of them shinobi,” Ibiki said. 

Minori nodded; at two enemies each, that was a reasonable number for an exam. “Are there any traps or anything around the cave?” 

“Some,” Ibiki said. “Intel was unable to ascertain what type and where exactly.” 

“Do we know anything about the enemy shinobi?” 

“They’re from Kiri,” Ibiki said. 

Minori nodded; that could mean that most of them would use water jutsu, but it could easily be a red herring to make him expect water jutsu. 

“Any final questions?” 

Minori shook his head. 

“You have thirty minutes to discuss the mission with your team. Someone will escort you to the starting point when your time is up.” With that, Ibiki left, slamming the door behind him. 

Anko yawned. “What a lame-ass mission!” 

“You shouldn’t say things like that, Anko,” Izumi scolded. “Every mission is vital to the running of the village.” 

“Go fuck yourself, Uchiha. Oh, wait, that’s what your Inuzuka is for, isn’t it?” 

Hana bared her teeth at Anko. “Jealousy is an ugly look on you, Anko. Tired of having no one but your snakes for company?” 

Shisui laughed, and Anko turned her glare on him, cracking her knuckles loudly. “You wanna share what’s so funny, pretty boy?” 

Minori had a feeling that if he didn’t step in soon, they’d spend the entire half an hour sniping at each other. “Izumi-nee-chan!” he interrupted, waving at her. “What are your capabilities?” 

“Taijutsu primarily, although I’m decent at genjutsu as well,,” Izumi replied. 

“Hana-nee-chan?” 

“The Haimaru Brothers and I can do all the Inuzuka techniques, of course, and we’re some of the best damn trackers in the village,” Hana said. “I’m also a medic.” 

Minori nodded thoughtfully; that gave them two medics, which was more than most teams had. “Anko-nee?” 

“Poisons. Interrogation. Torture. All the gross stuff no one wants to acknowledge,” Anko said. “I’m best at ninjutsu and genjutsu. I can also summon snakes, which are less noticeable trackers than Inuzuka’s mutts.” 

“Wanna say that again?” Hana challenged. 

“Okay, and now Shicchan-nii-chan!” Minori interrupted. 

“I’m fast,” Shisui said, grinning when Anko snorted. “Other than that, I’m good with genjutsu and kenjutsu, and I’m decent at ninjutsu. Oh, and I can summon crows.” 

Shisui, Minori knew, was more than decent at ninjutsu; he had mastered three different elements already. Saying he was good at genjutsu was just as much of an understatement. 

“We sure do have a lot of genjutsu users,” he mused. Genjutsu wasn’t particularly popular, so it was a little surprising, but he had somehow ended up with three Sharingan users on his team. 

“What am I, chopped liver?” Hana complained. One of her dogs barked in agreement. 

“Not at all! You’re our tracker,” Minori said cheerfully. “The first thing to do is actually find the scroll and the enemy shinobi.” 

“And then?” Izumi asked. 

Minori hummed thoughtfully. “It depends on the cave, and how they’re placed in the cave. Anko’s snakes would be good to get an idea of that.” 

The door opened. “Time’s up!” Ibiki barked. “Follow me.” 

Minori and the four proctors followed Ibiki out of the building, ending up at the entrance to a large training ground. It wasn’t as big as the Forest of Death, but it was still larger than any of the areas typically used for training. 

“You have two hours,” Ibiki said. “Your time starts now.” 

Minori started forward, only to realize that no one had moved with him. “Ah,” he said, looking at the four jounin watching him expectantly. “Hana, can you or the Haimaru brothers smell anything?” 

Hana stepped forward, the Haimaru brothers padding alongside her, and sniffed the air. “What do you think, boys? 

One of the dogs pointed his snout north-west. “That way.” 

Hana looked at the other two, who nodded. “That way,” Hana confirmed. 

“Okay, let’s go,” Minori said. “We’ll stop . . . stop when I say to stop.” 

This time, when he jumped into the trees and leapt in the direction Hana had indicated, the other four followed him. They ran through the trees until they were close enough that Minori could smell the enemy shinobi on the breeze, sweat and dirt and a hint of blood, at which point he motioned for them to move quietly. He brought them to a complete stop once they were within eyesight of the cave. Two shinobi guarded the entrance, keeping a lookout for anyone approaching. 

“Anko-nee, can you send a snake to get an idea of the layout of the cave?” 

Anko nodded, bit down on her thumb, and slammed her hand against the ground. Moments later, a small, brown snake lay in front of them. Anko whispered to it, and it slithered off towards the cave. Minori kept careful count of the minutes until it returned, marking how much time they had left. 

Ninety minutes remained when the snake left; sixty minutes remained by the time it returned, whispering to Anko about what it had found. 

“The cave starts out with one entrance, with two shinobi there. It splits into three corridors, each with a larger open area at the end, with two shinobi in each one,” Anko said. 

Minori considered this for a moment. That really wasn’t much to go on, and there was no telling what the shinobi in the caves might be capable of. The best thing to do was probably lure them out somehow, and then have Shisui trap them all in a genjutsu. Maybe taking out the two guards would be enough to draw their attention. 

“Okay, I have an idea to draw them out and trap then in a genjutsu,” Minori said. 

Anko snorted. “That’ll take too long. I say we just go in and take them all down. Unless you think you can’t handle a couple shinobi.” 

“No, but—” 

“Hana, you agree with me, right?” Anko interrupted. 

Hana shrugged. “What do you say, boys? Down to kick some ass?” 

The three Haimaru brothers quietly barked their agreement, and Hana nodded. “Sounds like we’re in agreement.” 

“Then let’s move!” 

Before Minori could stop either of them, Anko and Hana leapt out from the shrubbery they had been hiding in, immediately drawing the attention of the two shinobi standing on guard. As they fought, Minori quickly reorganized his plan. 

“Okay,” he said. “This can still work as a distraction. Do either of you have exploding tags?” 

Izumi and Shisui both held up tags. “Never leave home without ‘em,” Shisui said cheerfully. 

“Then let’s make some noise,” Minori said, wrapping a tag around a kunai. 

With each of them throwing a kunai with an exploding tag into the fray, Minori would have been shocked if the shinobi in the cave didn’t come running. He counted them as they ran out and engaged with Hana and Anko—two, five, eight—and then nodded at Shisui. “Genjutsu, now!” 

Shisui’s eyes turned red as he activated the Sharingan. Instinctively, Minori froze and reached for a kunai, his heart pounding in his chest. He forced himself to relax. Moments later the ten shinobi who had been fighting Anko and Hana froze in place; Minori scrambled to his feet and left the shrubbery. 

“You’re no fun!” Anko said. “It was just getting good.” 

“Well, now you can have fun tying them up!” Minori said.

The five of them made swift work of the Shinobi, tying each of them up so securely that they could barely wiggle their fingers. 

“That should be all of them,” Minori said, glancing towards the caves. “Anko, could you send another snake to scope things out?” 

“Waste of time,” Anko scoffed. “We’ve only got, what, half an hour left? Let’s just go.” 

By Minori’s estimate, they had around forty minutes remaining; it had taken longer than he had expected to tie up all the shinobi. Given that Anko’s snake had taken thirty minutes to search the caves last time, that wouldn’t leave them much time to locate and retrieve the scroll. 

“Okay. Let’s go,” he decided. 

The first stretch of the cave was empty, and they quickly reached the area where it branched off into three separate corridors. “Izumi-nee, Shicchan-nii-chan, you can take the path on the left,” he decided. “Anko-nee, you and I can take the one on the right. Hana-nee, you and the Haimaru brothers go straight.” 

The other four nodded, and the group split up. Anko whistled cheerfully as she walked alongside Minori, into the dim inner area of the caves. 

Eventually, she stopped humming. “Avoiding Shisui, huh? And Izumi, too.” Anko said. “So, you’re still not over it.” 

“Anko-nee, we should focus on the mission,” Minori scolded. 

“I’m focused, I’m focused,” Anko said, waving a hand dismissively. “Is it the Sharingan?”

“Why would I be scared of the Sharingan?” Minori laughed. “I have the Sharingan!” 

“Never said you were scared, shrimp.” 

Minori’s eyes scanned the cave, looking for something to distract her. There was nothing, but just in case he activated his Sharingan. 

There—genjutsu. 

He broke the genjutsu easily, revealing a scroll placed in a small alcove carved out of the cave wall. “So this is probably it, huh,” he said. “Guess we should signal the others.” 

“Uh-huh. You got a plan for that, buddy?” 

Minori paused in the middle of reaching into a pouch. He had used seals to signal the other members of his genin teams, and the Twelve Guardians had a similar system in place for signalling each other. He’d completely forgotten to give the other members of the exam squad a way to get in touch with him. But that was okay—Minori could easily talk to them using Kamui. It was a waste of chakra, but it was the fastest way to do it. 

“I’ll go contact them,” he said. 

“Oh, just grab it, and then we can find them,” Anko said, and reached out and picked up the scroll before he could stop her. 

The cave rumbled. 

“Whoops,” Anko said cheerfully. 

Minori took off at a run, unsealing his naginata, as Anko followed behind him. “We have to find the others!” 

There was no sign of anything amiss where the three paths met up, so Minori ran down the leftmost path. Hana had the three Haimaru brothers, after all, whereas Shisui and Izumi were on their own. 

As it turned out, he needn’t have worried about a difference in numbers; when he reached the end of the path, Shisui was fending off four shinobi all on his own, while Izumi fought two more. Minori slammed into one of the shinobi Shisui was fighting at full speed, sending her crashing into the wall. He swung his naginata around, knocking her out, and turned around to take in the fight. 

Izumi had managed to bring down one of the shinobi, while Anko had handily taken care of the others, and both of them had moved on to help Shisui. Minori took advantage of the enemy shinobi’s preoccupation to fling out a handful of poisoned senbon; it would take a little while to take effect, but it was worth a shot. That done, he leapt into the fight, taking on the fourth shinobi. 

In the end, they finished before the poison had a chance to take effect; by Minori’s account, they had fifteen minutes remaining. “We have to find Hana,” he said, activating his Sharingan with a moment’s thought. “Everyone hold on.” 

The other three grabbed hold of him, and he pulled them through a portal to the center path, where Hana was. 

Hana was up and fighting, two of the Haimaru brothers alongside her, while the third had collapsed. The other two, each of them fighting two shinobi, seemed to be on the brink of collapse as well. 

“Took you long enough!” Hana yelled, in the middle of fighting three more shinobi. “Now hurry up and help!” 

Minori leapt into the fray, sweeping his naginata under the legs of one of the shinobi. She easily leapt above it, but Izumi was quick to knock her out of the air with a kick. Shisui, beside him, knocked out another shinobi with the hilt of his tanto and trapped another with a genjutsu. “We’ve got this, Hana-nee! Take care of the Haimaru brothers!” 

With three of them fighting, they made quick work of the remaining shinobi. As soon as he had knocked out the last of them, Minori turned to Hana, who was healing her fallen ninken. “Is he okay?” 

After a few moments, Hana sat back on her heels and nodded. “He should be fine.” 

“Then we should go,” Minori said; they had about five minutes remaining. Minori had refrained from using any jutsu during the fighting, so he had plenty of chakra left for Kamui. He opened a portal to the Kamui world, since there were more people to transport this time, and from there opened a portal to the area where they had begun the second stage of the exam. 

Ibiki looked up from his pocket watch as they emerged from the portal. “In the nick of time. Got the scroll? Let’s see it.” 

“Here,” Minori said, handing him the scroll. 

Ibiki grunted as he looked it over. “Well, you got half of it.” 

“What?” 

Ibiki unrolled the scroll, revealing a tear in the middle of it where it should have continued. “You got half of it. Follow me to the third stage of the exam.” 

Anko wrapped an arm around his shoulders and gave him a fierce noogie. “Good luck, shrimp! You’re almost there!” 

Hana thumped him enthusiastically on the back once Anko released him, and even Izumi, who Minori had barely spoken to before, gave him a warm smile as Hana offered up a cheerful, “Good luck, kid!” 

Shisui remained an arms-length away; Minori hated that he was grateful for that. “You’ll do fine, as long as you keep your head,” he said. “Good luck.” 

Minori grinned and waved at them all as he followed after Ibiki. “Thanks, everyone!” 

There was no time to worry about how he’d done on the second part of the exam; right now, he had to focus on the upcoming fight. Ibiki led him first to a waiting room, where all the other jounin hopefuls waited as well. One by one, a tokubetsu jounin came to retrieve them. Sometimes, they had to wait several minutes for the tokubetsu jounin to return; sometimes, only a few. Minori didn’t attempt to talk to any of the other chuunin; he didn’t know any of them, and he had a feeling they wouldn’t appreciate it. 

“Hatake? Follow me.” 

The tokubetsu jounin led the way to a small arena. The bottom floor was marred with gouges and scorch marks. A few jounin stood around a balcony that wrapped around the room, leaning against the railing. Sakumo was seated behind a table with Shikaku Nara, Inoichi Yamanaka, Ibiki, and Shisui, while Tsunade stood to the side, most likely in case anyone needed medical attention. Sakumo gave Minori a brief smile before looking down and shuffling some papers. 

Minori concentrated on steadying his breathing and not fidgeting. With Inoichi and Ibiki on the panel, no doubt they were evaluating more than technical skill. 

At last, Sakumo looked up and nodded. “We’re ready. Send him in.” 

A door opened and closed on the balcony level. “It’s time?” a familiar voice asked. 

Minori’s blood turned to ice. Slowly, he turned around. Obito, standing on the balcony, grinned down at him for a moment before jumping down to join him in the arena. 

“You’re looking good,” Obito said, his smile tinged with relief. “I’m glad.” 

Minori forced a grin to his face. “I’ve been having lots of fun in the Capital!” 

Obito grinned back. “I hope you’ve been keeping up with your training, because I’m not gonna go easy on you.” 

“Some ground rules before we begin,” Sakumo said. “The match ends after an hour, after one of the participants forfeits, or after one of the participants is knocked out. No deadly force is allowed, and it will result in you being disqualified from the exam. Ready? Then . . . begin!” 

Obito’s hands flew through a series of signs. Minori knew them by heart, and dove out of the way as Obito blew flames into the air. His heart pounded in his chest, rabbit-fast, as he pulled out a handful of senbon coated in a paralytic. If he could stay away from Obito—if he could keep his distance—then he would be okay. 

Minori darted around the room, flinging senbon towards Obito and dodging the kunai and shuriken Obito threw at him and occasionally throwing back the ones that had shinobi wire attached, when it looked like Obito might use them to form a trap. Whenever Obito tried to close the distance between them, Minori used a Fire Release jutsu to fend him off. 

“You have been practicing!” Obito said, cheerfully. “But let’s see how you handle this.” 

A kunai crackling with lightning shot through the air. Minori dodged out of the way, only to end up in the path of another lightning kunai. Minori gritted his teeth against a scream as pain wracked his body. His knees threatened to buckle, but he forced himself to remain standing. 

Obito took advantage of Minori’s moment of weakness to dash forwards, drawing his tanto in one smooth motion. Already, he was too close for Minori to effectively counter with the naginata. Minori reached for his tanto, preparing himself to counter, pretending that the trembling of his hands was solely due to the lightning chakra.

Obito’s eyes went red, his blade flashing in the light. 

Minori stumbled back, tanto falling from his numb fingers. Blood rushed in his ears, blocking out every other sound. His eyes darted around the arena—too closed in, nowhere to escape to—

Obito adjusted his grip on the tanto, preparing an attack, but Minori couldn’t tell what kind. He didn’t know what Obito was going to do to him—

He needed to get away.

With Obito only a hair’s breadth away, Minori activated Kamui. He fell through the portal more than he entered it—he couldn’t linger in the in-between world, not when Obito had Kamui too—and hit the ground on the other side, arms curled protectively around his face. 

Minori squeezed his eyes shut, as if that would prevent the world from seeing him. His heart hammered in his chest, pounding hard enough to burst through his ribcage—maybe that was Obito’s plan, to simply allow Minori to self-destruct. 

How many times had Minori’s heart burst in his chest? 

Too many to count, and then Minori stood up and did it again as if nothing had happened. And always, Obito would smile at him as if nothing had happened. 

Had it all been a dream, this whole time? Surely, any moment now, Obito would appear and make the final blow, sliding his tanto into Minori’s chest like a knife through butter. And then Minori would wake up, back in the cave with Madara, and then it would begin all over again, another tortuous dream. 

He’d hoped that this time, at least, it was real. He should have known better. 

“You sure do know how to cause trouble, huh?” 

The voice pierced his thoughts. Slowly, Minori opened his eyes and lowered his arms. Kintsugi looked at him evenly. 

Minori opened his mouth, then shut it again. Unsure what to say, he looked around and found that they were in the blacksmith shop, behind the counter. 

“Don’t worry,” Kintsugi said. “I told Shishou I just knocked some stuff over when you came crashing in here. He’s not gonna come in.” 

“Kintsugi,” Minori said, somehow finding his voice again. “How are you here?” 

“You tell me,” Kintsugi said. “I was doing inventory when you came crashing out of thin air. That one of those shinobi techniques or whatever?” 

“Something like that,” Minori said. He looked down at his hands, unstained with blood. “I—I was taking the jounin exam.” 

“Did you pass?” Kintsugi said, as he started to pick up the kunai scattered on the ground. 

A hysterical giggle burst out of him. “I don’t know. I was in the middle of it. I—I left the arena.” 

“Are you going back?” Kintsugi asked. 

“I should,” Minori said. 

Kintsugi looked at him for several moments, and then gave Minori a small, crooked smile. “Use the door next time. Good luck with your exam.” 

Slowly, a smile spread across MInori’s face. “Yeah. Yeah, I will. Thanks, Kintsugi.” 

He activated Kamui and stepped through the portal. Once he was in the in-between world, he began to pick up speed, unsealing his naginata as he ran. He leapt off the top of one of the pillars, opening up a portal beneath him and falling through it as he struck down with his naginata. 

Obito turned just in time to bring his tanto up to hold off Minori’s strike. “So, you came back.” 

Minori avoided looking him in the eyes. “I had to give you a break, or you’d get tired out too quickly!” 

Obito laughed. “Cheeky. C’mon, show me what you’ve got. Unless you’re all talk.” 

“Okay, but don’t forget you asked for it!” 

Minori flipped his naginata around, aiming to smack the end into Obito’s gut. Obito stepped back, and Minori swept his naginata towards Obito’s knees. Obito leapt forwards, striking at Minori with his tanto. Minori stepped back, but Obito landed right on Minori’s naginata, forcing Minori to drop it to the ground. Minori flung out a handful of senbon as he jumped back, trying to get some room between them. His tanto was abandoned on the ground somewhere, but Obito didn’t give Minori a chance to look for it, lunging forward without a moment’s hesitation. Minori darted forwards, his hand glowing green with the chakra scalpel, flashing forwards using shunshin at the last moment. His hand struck Obito’s arm and phased through it uselessly. Minori stumbled forward, his eyes wide, not entirely sure what had happened—a clone, maybe? But no, Minori had never deactivated his Sharingan, he would have known if it was a clone—

Pain burst through the back of his head, and the world faded away. 

When Minori opened his eyes again, it was to the stark, bright lights of the hospital. A nurse, in the middle of checking him over with a diagnostic jutsu, smiled at him kindly. “I’ll be finished with you in a moment, Hatake-san,” she said. “You had a nasty knock to the head, but other than that you only had a few bumps and bruises to take care of. Senju-sensei had a look at you earlier, but I wouldn’t leave until she has a chance to check on you once more.” 

She stepped back and headed for the door. “Oh, and Hokage-sama came by and left something for you. It’s on the table.” 

There was an envelope on the table, a large one that could hold papers without needing to fold them. Minori pulled the top page out slowly, reading each line of text as it was revealed. 

He pulled it out completely and let it fall to his lap, a sigh escaping from him. His head fell back against the pillows. “Tokubetsu, huh?” 

There was a more detailed assessment included, but Minori didn’t feel like reading it at the moment. He folded the paper up and looked around for somewhere to store it. He was wearing a hospital gown, but his clothing and the few bags he had brought with him were waiting on a chair. Minori stood shakily and slipped the folder into one of the pouches, and then began to get dressed. He didn’t really want to wait around for Tsunade to show up; he was certain she would have a lecture for him. 

He rushed through dressing and leaving his room just in case she showed up, although he saw that he needn’t have worried once he got to the lobby; Tsunade was completely absorbed with lecturing a sulking Nawanuke, ignoring the nurse trying to get her attention. Minori took advantage of the distraction to escape the hospital. 

His chakra was a little low after the jounin exam, but Minori had enough left in him for one more use of Kamui. He ducked into the nearest alley and activated it quickly, stepping through to his room in the palace. 

As soon as his feet hit the floor, Minori collapsed onto his futon with a sigh of relief. Somehow, he had managed to avoid running into anyone he knew while leaving the hospital. 

The door slid open, and Kenta peered into the room. “Hah! Told you I heard something. Minori’s here!” 

Sachi, Kenta’s usual partner, poked her head in, elbowing Kenta out of the way as she did. “Hey, when did you get back? Wait, more importantly, how did it go?” 

Minori pulled up a grin as he shot them the victory sign. “I made Tokubetsu!” 

“What, not a full jounin? How disappointing,” Kenta teased. “Looks like you’re still the lowest ranking Guardian after all!” 

Sachi smacked her fist against his head. “As if you’re not a Tokubetsu, loudmouth.” 

Kenta scowled and dug his elbow into her ribs. “So? You’re only a Tokubetsu too!” 

“So I’m saying, quit being such a child,” Sachi said, shoving him away. “Minori, you coming to dinner?” 

“Yeah, I’m starving!” Minori said. “I don’t know when I last ate.” 

“Well, hurry up!” Kenta said, ducking out of the doorway. “I’m starving over here.” 

Sachi rolled her eyes as she went after him. “Wasn’t it you who ate three portions of curry for lunch?” 

“So? I’m a growing boy!” 

“You’re twenty-two.” 

Laughing, Minori followed them out the door. He paused in the doorway, sparing a glance towards the abandoned pouch with the assessment of his performance, before chasing after Sachi and Kenta.

He’d look at it later. 

***

Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha stared solemnly at each other. Orochimaru and Sakumo stood mirroring the statues’ positions, neither one moving a muscle as they stood on top of the rushing water. The Valley of the End was silent but for the crash of the waterfall against the river below. 

Sakumo drew his tanto. “I’ve let your crimes against humanity go unpunished for too long, Orochimaru. You may be my friend, but this ends here.” 

Orochimaru drew his sword. “I would like to see you try . . .  _ Hokage-sama _ .” 

They flew at each other, sending water spraying through the air in their wake. The clang of metal against metal rang through the air as their weapons clashed together, moving almost too quickly to be seen. Neither of them was able to get the upper hand on the other, each attempt at taking advantage of an opening blocked in the nick of time. Their weapons locked together, and, with a twist of Sakumo’s tanto, went soaring over the edge of the waterfall. Sakumo and Orochimaru leapt back at the same moment, putting distance between them. 

Orochimaru made a series of signs, and a dragon made of water rose from the river below. It lashed through the air, whipping its tail around and knocking Sakumo off the cliff, down to the water below. Orochimaru followed, leaping from the waterfall and landing on the water below just as Sakumo dragged himself to the surface. 

Sakumo bit his lip and slammed his hand against a rock, Orochimaru doing the same a split second later. Smoke filled the air, revealing three wolves by Sakumo and three snakes by Orochimaru when it finally cleared. As the wolves and snakes wrangled with each other, Sakumo dashed forwards, kunai crackling with lightning in hand, and lunged at Orochimaru. Orochimaru dodged expertly, avoiding being struck by the kunai or parrying with anything that could conduct the lightning chakra. He ducked behind Sakumo and kicked him in the back, sending him flying clear across the water. 

Orochimaru made another series of seals, this time sending several blades of wind slashing through the air. Sakumo jumped back, avoiding some of the blades but taking several cuts to his arms as he raised them to protect his face. 

Sakumo’s last movement, however, had put him on the shores, rather than on the water. With a wolfish grin, he threw a kunai still crackling with lightning chakra into the water. The kunai landed several feet short of Orochimaru, but the lightning arced through the water. Orochimaru leapt towards the shore, but too late; he stumbled upon landing, clearly feeling the effects of the lightning. 

His eyes narrowed into a glare, and he started a series of seals. Sakumo whistled sharply and ran forwards, joined by one of the wolves, who had managed to defeat the snake it had been fighting with the help of Sakumo’s lightning attack. 

Orochimaru slammed his hands against the ground, and a spike of earth burst out of the water, slamming into Sakumo’s chest and sending him flying back. Another snake, having defeated one of the wolves, was quick to intercept the wolf that had been at Sakumo’s side. 

Orochimaru walked across the water until he stood over Sakumo. 

Sakumo didn’t move. 

“You should never have been Hokage,” Orochimaru hissed. 

The wolves howled, but Orochimaru paid them no heed as he walked away, scooping his sword out of the water on the way. 

The snakes vanished in a puff of smoke, the wolves went to Sakumo’s side, and the Valley of the End was still once more. 

Narumi leapt down from the cliff and landed next to Sakumo. “Shit! Sakumo, are you with me?” 

Slowly, Sakumo’s eyes opened. He blinked his eyes a few times and grimaced. “Ugh. I feel like I got hit by a tree. ‘I’ll go easy on you,’ my ass. Fucking Orochimaru.” 

“I think your lightning pissed him off,” Narumi said, kneeling by his side. 

Sakumo tried to push himself up, and immediately winced and fell back. “Easy there,” Narumi said, helping him up. “That last hit looked pretty bad.” 

“Feels pretty bad,” Sakumo wheezed. “I don’t think they’re broken, but my ribs are at least bruised. Bastard.” 

Narumi helped him stand, putting an arm around Sakumo’s waist while Sakumo put an arm around Narumi’s shoulders. Slowly, they limped from the battlefield. “Don’t worry, I’m sure Tsunade will fix that.” 

“You mean she’ll heal them? Or she’ll finish what Orochimaru started for pulling something to stupid?” Sakumo said. 

“Both, probably,” Narumi said. 

Sakumo lowered his voice. “Still, what do you think? Enough to get the attention of the Akatsuki?” 

“It definitely adds some weight to Orochimaru going rogue,” Narumi murmured. “I bet he’ll be marked down as an S-rank missing-nin by tonight.” 

Sakumo chuckled. “He’ll love that. I bet he’s going to rub his new bounty in our faces the next time we hear from him.” 

“How is he going to contact us, anyways?” 

“Snakes. Orochimaru leaves a message with a snake on the regular, and Kakashi summons the same snake to get the message,” Sakumo said, and then groaned. “But he didn’t have to go so hard on me! My old bones can’t take it.” 

Narumi laughed. “C’mon, old man, let’s get you home. I’m sure Tsunade can’t wait to knock some sense into you.” 

“On second thought, I feel pretty good. Maybe we should swing by Tanzaku-Gai for a vacation. We might run into Jiraiya and Naruto!” 

“Nice try, Sakumo.” 


	49. Interlude: Year 2, Part 1

Jiraiya might have been one of the greatest shinobi ever, or whatever, but he sure was an asshole. Naruto had been scouring the city for him for three hours, and had yet to find any sign of him. After this next bar, he was done; he was going to head on to the next city on his own and Jiraiya could just catch up to him. 

The bars here were annoying about letting kids inside, even shinobi, but luckily it looked like one of the girls was on break. She was crouched against the wall, head buried in her knees so he couldn’t see her face, but there wasn’t anyone else around he could ask. 

“Hey, Nee-chan,” he called, walking up to her. “Have you seen an old guy around here? Lots of white hair, big scroll on his back, goes by Jiraiya?” 

“Jiraiya-sama? N-no, sorry. I haven’t seen him today.” She looked at him, wiping tears from her eyes. “Are you his son?” 

“His son? That gross old man? Hell no!” Naruto exclaimed. The girl shrank back, and he held up his hands in apology. “Sorry, sorry.” 

He took another look at her. Her makeup was smeared and her eyes were red, like she’d been crying for a while. Her hair was a mess, too, like it had been done up all nicely but then something had happened to it. “Hey, Nee-chan, are you okay?” 

“It’s nothing,” she murmured, as she attempted to wipe her face clean with her sleeve. 

Naruto rummaged through his bag until he came up with one of the towels he used to clean off after training and poured some water from his canteen on it before handing it to her. “Sorry it’s not a nice handkerchief or something.” 

She smiled tremulously as she accepted the towel. “You’re very kind, thank you.” 

“Don’t worry about it, I have tons of ‘em,” he said, crouching down across from her. “You wanna talk about it?” 

“I shouldn’t,” she said. 

“It’s okay! I’m not gonna tell anyone, or anything. I mean, who would I tell? I just got here a week ago, and I’m supposed to be leaving today. Your secret would be safe with me!” 

She peeked up from the towel, and he gave her a cheerful grin. “I suppose,” she said, “if you’re leaving, and you promise not to tell, it would be alright to say . . .” 

Naruto nodded encouragingly, to show her that he was ready to listen to whatever she had to say. He wasn’t really expecting much, honestly. Boyfriend or girlfriend troubles, maybe? Work troubles, since she was sitting outside the bar? Possibly family troubles? 

“I’m . . . working . . . for a man,” she said, her eyes watering with tears. “He . . . I’m doing it to make money for my family. We really need the money, I’m not doing it because I like the work. But he’s refusing to pay me, now, and he says if I try to complain then he’ll turn me in to the police.” 

“That’s horrible!” Naruto said. “Can’t you turn him in instead, or something? Or tell someone who can stop him?” 

She shook her head. “He’s a powerful man. Half of the police wouldn’t do anything, and the other half would arrest me as well, and I can’t afford that . . . it’s alright. I can handle it somehow. Thank you for listening.” 

Naruto frowned. He didn’t like the thought of just leaving her to deal with some super powerful guy all on her own. “You sure? Maybe Jiraiya would know what to do. He knows a bunch of people, ya know!” 

She shook her head rapidly. “No, I couldn’t possibly bother Jiraiya-sama with something so trivial.” 

“Maybe I could help,” Naruto suggested. 

“I couldn’t ask that of you,” she said, shaking her head rapidly. “You’ve already done so much! And I’ve heard the shinobi he hires are incredibly strong. Even if you do know Jiraiya, you couldn’t possibly handle them all on your own.” 

“What’s this guy’s name, anyways?” Naruto said. “Don’t worry, I’m not gonna go after him on my own or something. I bet once Jiraiya hears some guy’s going around hiring shinobi and threatening people, he’ll want to look into it.” 

The girl sniffed and dabbed at her eyes with the towel. “Goda. His name is Goda. But you didn’t hear it from me.” 

“Thanks. You can keep that; you look like you need it more than me.” With that, Naruto stood. “Any idea where Jiraiya might be?” 

“He likes to frequent the Red Camellia,” the girl said. “It’s at the end of the street, you can’t miss it.” 

Naruto had his doubts about that at first—the red light district as a whole was pretty flashy—but as soon as he saw the place, he had to admit she was right. The place had more lights decorating it than every other building combined, and had girls posted at the entrance, calling out to anyone passing by. The building itself was three stories high, and even from the street outside, Naruto could hear the raucous conversations and music from inside. There were even red petals scattered on the street in front of the bar. 

Trust Jiraiya to go for the gaudiest bar in the city. 

“Hey, Nee-chan!” he called out to one of the girls. 

She gave him a sweet, lipsticky smile. “Why, aren’t you cute. Run along, little boy, you’re not old enough to play with the adults yet.” 

“I’m looking for Jiraiya. Old guy, lots of hair, big scroll on his back. You seen him?” 

“Of course,” she said. “He’s inside right now.” 

“Cool,” Naruto said, taking a step towards the door.

She stepped in front of him. “Hold it, kid! I’m still not letting you inside.” 

“Yeah, you will,” Naruto said, reaching into his pouch and holding up a fat purse. “‘Cause I’ve got the old man’s wallet. Unless you want his tab to go unpaid?” 

She frowned at him. “Fine. But you better not try anything, got it?” 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it. I just want to talk to Jiraiya.” 

She sighed, blowing a strand of hair away from her face. “I’ll take you there.” 

Jiraiya had a private room, of course, and was laughing it up with no less than three girls, one on each arm and another one pouring sake. “Hey, Pervy Sage!” Naruto yelled. “We’re supposed to be leaving!” 

Jiraiya waved him off. “Oh, go play in the arcade or whatever it is kids do these days. The adults are busy. Did you bring my wallet?” 

Scowling, Naruto held it up, jumping out of the way when Jiraiya tried to grab it. “Not so fast, old man! I wanted to talk to you about something.” 

“Fine, fine, make it quick.” 

“You know anything about a guy named Goda?” 

“Goda? Now where did a shrimp like you hear a name like that?” 

“A girl I met said he was giving her trouble,” Naruto said. “He’s threatening her, but she can’t do anything because he’s got the cops on his side and he’s hiring ninja. We should help her.” 

Jiraiya waved a hand. “Not my village, not my genin team. And they aren’t yours, either.” 

“We can’t just let him go around threatening people!” 

“We can, and we will. Drop it,” Jiraiya said. 

“Even if he’s hiring ninja?” 

“Especially if he’s hiring ninja. We don’t need to be on the radar of every missing-nin in the area,” Jiraiya said. 

Naruto rolled his eyes. “Oh, yeah, ‘cause you’re being real inconspicuous.” 

Jiraiya clapped. “Wow, a multi-syllable word! I’m impressed.” 

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. Whatever. I’m out of here.” Naruto tossed Jiraiya’s walled to him and turned to go.

“Naruto. I mean it. Leave it be.” 

Naruto stomped towards the door. “Yeah, whatever, I got it.” 

Naruto left the bar and the red light district—someone his age hanging around the red light district was just asking for attention. Once he was back in the regular part of down, where kids his age filled the streets, he slipped down a narrow alleyway and, after making sure he was alone, summoned several clones. 

“Okay, we’re trying to find Goda. I’m gonna stay here, so if you find something, dispel. And don’t just dispel in the middle of the street!” he ordered. 

The clones nodded, and put their hands together to form the seals for the transformation technique. Some of them turned into random adults, some into other children, and some into bugs or small animals. Transformations completed, they left the alley and diffused into the city. Naruto settled down to wait, drawing a genjutsu-disruption seal—one of his most recent creations—on his wrist to pass the time. With that many clones in that many disguises, it was only a matter of time before they found something out. 

Most of the clones dispersed after learning only minor gossip, only a little more helpful than what Naruto already knew, although he did find out a little bit about the ninja working for Goda. Most of them seemed to be missing-nin or mercenaries, not actually affiliated with a village, which was good. He didn’t want to cause an international incident or something by interfering, and if they were Konoha shinobi then he would have had to put extra effort into his disguise. 

One of the clones, one that had been disguised as a stray cat, managed to actually find Goda, although Goda’s bodyguards had kicked it out of the way while it was trying to follow them. Still, it was progress, and now Naruto knew what Goda looked like. 

He was a surprisingly handsome man, with neatly slicked back hair and chiseled features, the kind of face that wouldn’t have looked out of place on a movie poster. Naruto had expected some gross, old gangster. Kind of like Jiraiya, but evil. 

Another clone dispersed, filling Naruto’s head with knowledge not just of where Goda lived, but the layout of the place, and where the guards were located. People really didn’t pay much attention to bugs, Naruto supposed. 

He stood, putting away his sealing materials and pulling down the sleeves of his jacket so that it covered the genjutsu-disruption seals on both his wrists. Each seal was only good for one disruption, but hopefully two would be enough. 

Just before stepping out of the alley, Naruto removed his headband and slipped it into one of his pouches. If he was caught, he didn’t need what he was doing to be connected to Konoha. 

Disguised by the transformation technique, Naruto slipped through the crowds, occasionally getting more memories from the remaining clones. There weren’t any hiding places around Goda’s mansion; his garden was carefully groomed so there weren’t any shrubbery or large trees to hide in, and hired shinobi regularly patrolled the area. His clone had gotten in pretty easily as a bug, however, so Naruto intended to replicate that method of entry. So long as there weren’t any sensors in the area, he’d be able to get away with it. 

It was easy enough; there weren’t any open windows, but he slipped in through the front door along with Goda once the man returned with his bodyguards. None of them so much as glanced at the gnat that slipped in with them. 

They led him right to Goda’s office. Goda took a seat at his desk and pulled out a pile of papers, while Naruto perched on the ceiling above his head. 

This would be the perfect moment to act . . . if only Naruto knew what he intended to do. 

He hadn’t really thought this far ahead. Sure, he wanted to stop Goda from hurting people, but how? He could try to steal all the evidence about that girl, but there was no way of knowing if Goda had hidden extra copies somewhere, and that wouldn’t stop Goda from hurting other people. Naruto could threaten him and beat him up, but at the end of the day, he would be gone, and Goda would still be there. Maybe he’d be frightened for a little while, but before too long he would realize that no one was there to make sure he stayed in line, and he’d go back to threatening people. 

There was one thing that he knew for sure would permanently stop Goda, but maybe there was another way. 

Naruto needed more information, so he waited, listening to every word that came out of Goda’s mouth, slowly growing more and more disgusted and furious. 

When Goda got up hours later, Naruto didn’t think twice before following him through the mansion, sticking close to the ceiling so they didn’t notice him. They ended up in a luxurious bedroom, with a bed big enough for four people and a bottle of sparkling wine waiting in a bucket of ice on the table. Two guards waited outside, while two went inside with Goda. One of them stood by the window and the other by the door, while Goda lounged on the bed and spun the dial on the telephone on the bedside table. 

“Hey, babe, it’s me. You busy? . . . Yeah? That’s too bad, another time then, yeah? I’ll be waiting.” 

Goda hung up the phone and, without even a pause, spun the dial again. “Hey, babe, it’s me. You busy? . . . You’re not? Good, good. Hey, how about you come on by? I’ll send my boys around with the car to give you a lift. Trust me, you don’t want to walk through the city at night. Yeah? Great, they’ll be by in ten . . . yeah, you too, babe.” 

Goda hung up the phone and flicked his fingers at a guard. “You, grab the car and pick up Fumiko. And don’t scare her. Have . . . oh, have that red-head take your place, she’s hot.” 

“Yes, sir,” the guard said, before turning and leaving. 

The guard left. For a moment, there was only one guard in the room. Naruto wondered if he should act—surely, this was the best moment—but he couldn’t bring himself to move. Not yet, he told himself. He could still get more information, maybe something that would persuade Jiraiya to help. 

The door opened, and a woman with red hair walked in. 

“Great, you’re here,” Goda said. “Do that thing with the soundproofing.” 

The woman froze. Naruto’s eyes widened as he caught sight of a familiar spiral emblazoned on her shirt. 

She spun on her heel, flinging kunai at the ceiling, right where Naruto had been waiting. Naruto barely managed to dodge out of the way; had he been a larger bug, he probably wouldn’t have been able to.

“Gah! My ceiling! What’s the big idea, it’s just a bug!” 

“That’s a shinobi,” she snapped, reaching into her pouch and pulling out a series of shuriken. 

At this point, there was no point keeping up the disguise anymore. Naruto released the transformation, reaching for a kunai and a seal as he dropped to the ground. 

The woman’s eyes widened, and Naruto realized too late that although he had removed his headband, he hadn’t taken off the jacket that clearly bore an Uzumaki spiral. 

Neither of them moved. 

Naruto gulped and adjusted his grip on the kunai. 

“What are you waiting for?” Goda snapped. “Get rid of him, already!” 

The woman flung out the shuriken. Naruto dodged on reflex, throwing himself to the side, but noticed as he did that the shuriken had been too high to hit him anyways. They were, however, at the perfect height to lodge in the throat of the bodyguard who had been by the window. 

“Traitor!” Goda screeched. 

The door slammed open. 

“Get down!” the Uzumaki woman yelled. Naruto, who had been about to stand, threw himself to the ground. Chakra chains snapped through the air, wrapping around the two shinobi who had just charged through the door. They toppled to the ground, blocking the doorway partially. That didn’t stop the next bodyguard, however, who leapt over them and ran at the Uzumaki. She responded swiftly, dodging and evading his punches and slipping around to hit him where he least expected it. 

Another bodyguard appeared in the door, and Naruto threw the kunai he’d been holding at him. The man easily deflected the kunai, but hadn’t been expecting the exploding tag Naruto had attached to it. Orange smoke filled the room. Naruto could still see the Uzumaki woman and the man she was fighting, but not much else. He pulled out another kunai and crept closer, hoping to maybe stab the man in the leg or something to give her an advantage. 

Motion blurred in the corner of his eye. Naruto flung out the kunai on reflex, and heard the sickening sound of it slicing through flesh, followed by a quiet gurgle. 

The remaining bodyguard let out one final groan and hit the ground. 

“Wind Release: Ocean Breeze!” 

A refreshing wind, smelling faintly of salt, rushed through the room and cleared away the orange smoke. The three bodyguards lay in the doorway, one of them slightly burned from the exploding tag, along with the guard at the Uzumaki woman’s feet and the one by the window. 

Goda lay next to the wall, Naruto’s kunai in his throat. 

The Uzumaki woman wandered over and nudged him with his foot. “Dammit. There goes my paycheck.” 

She turned to Naruto. “You. What are you doing so far away from Uzushio?” 

“I . . . I’m on a training trip,” Naruto said, still staring at Goda and the pool of blood spreading from his throat. 

Footsteps ran down the hallway, heading right towards them. She clicked her tongue. “That explosive seal of yours must have alerted the whole compound. We need to get out of here.” 

Before Naruto could move, the woman had flashed across the room, throwing him over her shoulder. She opened the window with one foot and leapt through it, landing smoothly in the garden below, and then made one last leap over the walls of the mansion. 

Finally, she set him down. “Hurry and get back to your teacher. I’m out of here. Don’t go sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong again.” 

Naruto could hear yelling coming from Goda’s mansion. He took a few steps backwards, stumbled, and turned and ran back to where he had left Jiraiya. 

He didn’t even make it halfway to the red light district before a hand snagged him and dragged him into an alley. “What the hell did you do?” Jiraiya demanded. “I told you to let it go!” 

“I couldn’t just let him go around hurting people!” Naruto exclaimed. 

Jiraiya ran a hand over his face. “Dammit, brat, I had agents in place there! Goda was trying to hire the Akatsuki. It was the first clear chance to get some intel on them that I’ve had in months!”

“The Akatsuki?” Naruto echoed.

“An ostensibly peace-seeking organization. They’re slippery as snakes, but now and then some of the members take on mercenary jobs. Argh, and now I have to start from scratch.” 

“Was . . . was one of your agents an Uzumaki woman?” 

“Uzumaki? No,” Jiraiya said. 

“Oh.” 

Jiraiya sighed. “Nevermind that. Hopefully, their covers weren’t blown and they didn’t get themselves killed . . . they’ll get in touch with me if they’re able. We need to skip town. I want us far away from this disaster. And next time I say not to mess with something, listen to me.” 

“Or maybe you should’ve told me that you had agents and plans and stuff,” Naruto said. “I’m not some dumb kid, I’m supposed to be your apprentice. How am I supposed to learn all about this ‘agent for the village’ thing if you don’t tell me anything about it?” 

Jiraiya snorted. “You wouldn’t last one day in my job.” 

Naruto folded his hands over his chest. “Oh yeah? Try me! I bet I’d do a better job than you, Pervy Sage!” 

Jiraiya grabbed Naruto in a headlock and gave him a vicious noogie, ignoring Naruto’s flailing limbs and shouted protests. “You’re decades too young to be challenging me, punk!” He released Naruto and pushed him forwards before Naruto could retaliate. “Now get a move on. If anyone asks, neither of us were anywhere near here. And put your headband back on.” 

“Yeah, yeah, you don’t need to lecture me.” Jiraiya set off down the street, and Naruto took out his headband and tied it around his head before following after him. 

***

“I give up! It’s too hot to train!”

Minori leaned against his naginata, gasping for breath, as Kenta flopped to the ground. “It is kind of hot,” Minori agreed. 

Daiki, who had already finished his spar with Sachi, handed Minori a water bottle. Minori gave him a thankful smile before taking a gulp. 

“I’m going to melt,” Kenta whined. 

Sachi kicked him in the ribs. “Quit complaining! Are you a guardian or not?” 

Minori poured out some of the water and splashed it onto his face, and then sealed away his naginata. When he looked up, Sachi and Kenta were wrestling with each other, and their pouches were strewn around, having apparently been used as impromptu projectiles. 

One of Kenta’s pouches had opened, and a folded piece of paper had fallen out. Minori knelt down and unfolded it, revealing a colorful flyer. “A summer festival? Kenta, what’s this?” 

“Oh, that? Just a flyer I picked up. I like to send them home to my kid brother so he knows what he’s missing out on,” Kenta snickered, only to shout as Sachi jabbed him in the ribs. 

“Huh. Hey, Kenta, can I have this?” 

“What—ouch, hey, cut it out—yeah, sure, I can always get another. That’s it, Sachi, you’re going down!” 

Hours later, after changing and taking a quick shower, Minori burst through the doors of the blacksmith shop, waving the slightly wrinkled flyer in the air. “Kintsugi! Kintsugi, did you know about this?” 

Kintsugi looked up from the ninja wire he had been sorting. “What, the summer festival? They have that every year. Ma used to make my brothers take me when I was a kid.” 

“Eh, really? I must have missed it,” Minori said. “Is it a small festival?” 

“It’s pretty big. The whole main street gets shut down for the entire day, and there’s a parade with the Daimyo and everything.” 

“I really don’t remember it,” Minori said, tilting his head to the side as he thought. “Although, I think I did go on a trip with Madam Shijimi in the summer. She wanted to go somewhere colder.” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “It’s pretty hard to miss if you’re in the city. So, you want to go, don’t you?” 

“Right in one!” MInori said, “Kintsugi, go to the festival with me! Please?” 

Kintsugi looked at him for a minute before sighing. “Fine, I’ll go. Since you really want me to.” 

Minori cheered. “Yay! I’ve never been to a festival in the Capital. Oh! I wonder if I should bring Yuzuchii?” 

“Who?” 

“A friend! I’ll ask her. When should we meet? And where? At the festival?” 

“I’ll meet you at the palace,” Kintsugi said, already going back to his sorting. “At noon. It’ll be a pain to meet up at the festival.” 

“You’re the best! I’ll see you then,” Minori said, before rushing from the blacksmith shop as quickly as he had arrived and heading back to the palace. 

Yuzuki, at this time of day, had finished lessons with her tutors and retreated to her rooms in the palace. Minori waved cheerfully at the guardian watching her as he let himself in. A few attendants waited in the main room, in case Yuzuki needed something, and Minori waved at them as well. Most of them never waved back. 

“Yuzuchii! Did you know about the summer festival?” 

Yuzuki, who was lounging in a yukata with cold tea and a fan, looked up at him as he entered. “Oh, the parade? Yes, of course. I participate in it every year. It is absolutely dreadful.” 

Minori took a seat next to her. “Dreadful? Why?” 

Yuzuki sighed and beckoned him over, pouring him a cup of tea as she did. “My maids wake me up early in the morning and assist me in preparing myself. First, I must put on makeup, so much that once the procedure is done, I can hardly tell it is me. They also put my hair up in a horribly uncomfortable net, since the hairstyle is so elaborate that I must wear a wig rather than have someone actually put up my hair. After all this, I spend several more hours getting dressed with the assistance of my maids. The kimono weighs several pounds, so it is quite impossible to put on by myself. All this, and I spend the entire parade in a palanquin that no one can actually see into.” 

“That sounds horrible! So you’ve never actually seen the festival?” 

Yuzuki sighed. “I am afraid not. My father would never allow it. He says that such things are for the common folk.” 

“I was hoping you could go with me,” Minori said. “You said that with the makeup on, you can’t tell it’s you?” 

“Well, yes—my entire face is caked with white powder,” Yuzuki said. “Why, what are you thinking?” 

“Well, if no one can tell who it is under the makeup, then could you get one of your maids to take your place? You must have at least one maid who’s around the same size as you,” Minori said. 

“I do, now that you mention it,” Yuzuki said. “Why, there is even a maid who promised me a favor, for I did not inform my father that she missed work for a day to go on a date.” 

Minori clapped his hands together. “Perfect! She can take your place for a day, and you can come with me to the festival! We can just do her makeup first thing, and no one will know the difference.” 

“That would be wonderful!” Yuzuki exclaimed. “Ah, but I don’t have anything to wear. All of my clothing must be far too formal . . .” 

“I think a yukata or one of your simpler kimono would be fine to wear.” 

“I wouldn’t stand out?” 

“If you’re nervous, then I’ll wear one too!” Minori declared. “Come on, let’s see what you have in your closet.” 

Most of Yuzuki’s fancier clothes were carefully packed away in storage, while her closet was full of the things she wore on an everyday basis—although they were still fancier than anything Minori wore. Still, he managed to find something suitable for both of them by the end of the day, and Yuzuki found the maid and got her to agree to take Yuzuki’s place in the parade. 

They started the next day early, meeting with the maid before anyone else was awake Thankfully, the maid they had recruited knew about the makeup process, and was actually able to do it herself with only minor assistance from Yuzuki and Minori. By the time the base of the makeup was finished, Minori wasn’t able to recognize her at all. 

They left before the other maids arrived to help, dressed in the kimonos they had selected the day before. Everyone was too busy preparing for the parade to pay them much attention as they slipped out of the castle. It was still too early to meet with Kintsugi by the time they left, but they passed the time at an indoor cafe which, thankfully, had air conditioning. 

Then, once it was almost noon, they returned to the side gate of the palace. 

“It’s quite strange,” Yuzuki mused, fiddling absentmindedly with the end of the braid Minori had done for her. “Being out here, instead of in there. People are so much more . . . relaxed.” 

“But you’ve left the palace before, right?” Minori asked. 

“Only to travel to other places owned by my family,” Yuzuki said. “Such as our trips to Konoha.” 

“Madam Shijimi sure does like going to Konoha! I wonder why.” 

“The answer is quite simple,” Yuzuki said. “Mother enjoys seeing the handsome young shinobi.” 

Minori burst out laughing. “Well, I can’t blame her there!” 

He heard footsteps approaching them from down the street, and looked up just as Kintsugi rounded the corner. “Oh, you’re here already,” Kintsugi said. 

“Boo! What boring clothes!” Minori declared, waving a hand at him. “Go home and change!” 

Kintsugi glanced down at his outfit—the T-shirt, shorts, and sandals that he wore pretty much every day—and then up at Minori. “I don’t own a yukata. And what about you? We’re going to a festival, not a tea ceremony or whatever.” 

Yuzuki blushed, but Minori just grinned and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “We wanted to get dressed up! Don’t I look nice?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “You already know you look nice. You always do. So, are we going?” 

He turned and headed down the street, but Yuzuki hesitated to follow. Minori gave her an encouraging smile and took her hand, gently pulling her along to walk beside him. “You’re no fun, Kintsugi!” 

“What did you want to do at the festival, anyways?” Kintsugi asked. 

“I don’t really know. Play games? Eat food? What do you want to do, Yuzuchii?” 

“Ah . . . I am afraid I don’t really know what there is to do,” Yuzuki said. 

“Then we’ll have to do everything!” Minori declared. “First stop, the games.” 

“We have to actually get to the festival first,” Kinstugi said. 

It was obvious when they reached the festival. It was early, but the main street was crammed full of people, and colorful lanterns had been strung along the street. Yuzuki’s hand, slightly sweaty, clung to Minori’s as he pulled them through the crowds after Kintsugi. 

“What do you want to play?” Kintsugi asked. “Yo-yos? Goldfish?” 

“I always feel bad for the goldfish,” Minori laughed. “But I like the yo-yos! Oh, and the throwing and shooting games, those are fun!” 

“Oh, yeah, I think they have some of those. But the yo-yos are closer.” 

Kintsugi moved ahead. Minori tried to follow, but was held back by Yuzuki, who had gotten distracted by a flashing sign. The second of hesitation was enough to let the crowd close around Minori and Yuzuki. “Ah—Kintsugi, wait—” 

The crowd parted, and a hand closed around Minori’s. “Don’t get lost,” Kintsugi said. “I told you, this place is a pain.” 

He pulled Minori forward, out of the crowd, and stopped at a stall where an old man presided over a tub of water with several yo-yos bobbing up and down inside it. Yuzuki released Minori’s hand and crouched by the tub. “What are these?” 

“Yo-yo balloons,” Minori said, letting go of Kintsugi and crouching down at her side. “You’re supposed to fish them out of the water.” 

Two small hooks attached to paper strings appeared in front of him. “Here,” Kintsugi said, crouching down beside Minori with a hook of his own. Kintsugi stared down at the yo-yos, clearly seeking the best one to go for. 

Minori handed one of the strings to Yuzuki. “See, the yo-yos have rubber strings attached to them, and you’re supposed to try to fish them out with the hook. Like this.” 

Minori looked over the balloons and, spotting one with a rubber string that didn’t look too hard to get, attempted to snag it with the hook. His first attempt missed, and on the second attempt the string dissolved as he was lifting it, plopping the balloon back into the water. Minori laughed. “Except, the string is made of paper, so if you leave it in the water for too long, it breaks.” 

Kintsugi’s arm moved past him, smoothly lowering the hook into the water, snagging a balloon, and lifting it out. Minori clapped. “You’re good!” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “My brothers only let me have one try. I had to get good.” 

Beside him, Yuzuki attempted to catch a balloon, only for her string to break the first time she managed to snag a balloon. “This is more difficult than it seems.” 

“There’s a trick to it,” Kintsugi said. “Some of the strings are closer to the surface, or easier to get. Go for those.” 

Minori fished out a handful of ryo and handed them to the stall owner, who gave them each a hook and a string in exchange. Kintsugi neatly lowered his into the water and lifted out another balloon. 

Minori clapped. “Wow! You’re cool, Kintsugi!” 

“Ah!” Yuzuki exclaimed. “I think I’ve got one—oh, no, I’ve dropped it.” 

Minori handed her his string. “Try again! You’ll get it this time.” 

“Try this balloon,” Kintsugi said, pointing to one in particular. “See the string there?” 

“I believe I do—oh! Oh, I did it!” Yuzuki fumbled the balloon, nearly dropping it back in the tub. “Minori, I got one!” 

“Yay!” Minori cheered. “Now we have one for each of us.” 

Kintsugi gave one of his balloons to Minori and wrapped the string of the other balloon around his hand. Minori did the same and showed Yuzuki how to do it as well. “There’s a shooting game a couple stalls over,” Kintsugi said. 

Yuzuki experimentally bounced the balloon up and down. “I would be interested in the shooting game.” 

They stuck to the edges of the crowd, this time, so that they wouldn’t lose each other as they made their way to the stall The shooting game was one of those ones with strangely weighted fake kunai and stacked bottles. A couple people were playing when they arrived, but soon left in huffy frustration when all of their kunai bounced harmlessly off the bottles. 

Minori hesitated, for a moment. He’d used to like this game. He and Obito had played it together, trying to outscore one another in the rigged games they set up for the shinobi. Obito had always let him win, and bought him ice cream after. 

“You don’t have to play if you don’t want to,” Kintsugi said. 

“Oh—no, I want to,” Minori said quickly. “You should both try, too!” 

“Step on up and win a prize,” the stall runner called. “Only 50 ryo!” 

Kintsugi fished out the coins and handed them over, and each of them received five false kunai in exchange. 

Minori gestured for Kintsugi to go first. “Show Yuzuki how it’s done!” 

“I’m not good at this one,” Kintsugi said, readying a kunai. “There’s a trick to knocking them over.” 

His first throws managed to topple a couple of the bottles on the top of the stack, and then some from the middle of the stack, but his last throws rebounded uselessly off the bottom of the stack. Kintsugi stepped back and gestured Yuzuki forward. 

Her first throw went entirely wide, and Minori stepped up to adjust her grip. “Like this—it’ll be more likely to go where you want it,” he said. “And adjust your feet a little, too.” 

Her second throw hit the stack, but rebounded off the bottom, and the rest of her throws either missed or rebounded. 

“This is more difficult than it looks,” Yuzuki noted. 

“Well, it is rigged,” Minori said. 

“Excuse you!” the stall owner exclaimed. 

“All carnival games are rigged!” Minori continued cheerfully. “But that just means they’re a little tricky.” 

Minori lifted one of the kunai, checking the balance of it, adjusted his grip ever so slightly, and hurled it at just the right point on the stack. The bottles scattered, flying every which way. Minori grinned and looked up and to the side on reflex, only to remember. 

His parents weren’t there to congratulate him. Of course they weren’t. 

“Minori.” 

Minori blinked rapidly, and found Kintsugi calmly watching him. “Oh! Um, anyways, that’s how you do it! It’s pretty much exactly like the ones in Konoha.” 

“I don’t think I could throw it that hard if I tried,” Kintsugi said. 

The stall owner had pressed himself into a corner of the stall, and now shakily lifted a finger to point at the row of prizes displayed on a shelf. Sheepishly, Minori noted that the kunai had lodged itself into the back wall of the stall. “Whoops! Um, I’ll take that stuffed bear.” 

He gave the bear to Yuzuki, who tried to refuse but seemed quite pleased when he insisted. “I’m getting hungry,” Yuzuki noted as they left the shooting game. 

“Food stalls are up this way,” Kintsugi said, leading the way up the street. Minori followed after him. Yuzuki, who seemed to have gained some confidence around the crowd, sometimes walked ahead and sometimes slowed down, depending on what caught her interest. Minori grinned as he watched her, enjoying all the funny faces she made at certain signs. 

He was so busy watching her that he forgot entirely to watch where he was going. 

One of his sandals snagged on something, sending him flying forward; Minori only barely managed to catch himself by grabbing hold of the back of Kintsugi’s shirt. 

Kintsugi stumbled back, surprised by Minori’s sudden weight. “Hey, careful.” 

“Sorry, I tripped,” Minori said, carefully releasing Kintsugi. He took one step forward immediately tripped over his sandals again, narrowly managing to catch himself on Kintsugi again. 

“Careful,” Kintsugi stressed. “The pavement is uneven here, they never maintenance this street.” 

Minori stepped out of the sandals and picked them up. Sure enough, one of the straps had broken. “Wow, these are way less sturdy than my shinobi sandals.” 

There was nothing to be done about it, though, so Minori simply shifted them to one hand and stepped forward. 

Kintsugi held out a hand. “Give them here. You can’t walk barefoot here, there’s trash all over the place.” 

“What are you going to do with them, though?” Minori said, even as he handed them over.

Kintsugi crouched down, setting the sandals on the ground, and fiddled with the straps. Minori leaned around, trying to figure out what he was doing, but couldn’t manage to catch a glimpse around Kintsugi’s hands. 

Eventually, Kintsugi’s hands stilled. “Lift up your feet.” 

Minori lifted up his feet, one at a time, and Kintsugi slid the sandals onto his feet. “Wow, I didn’t even know you could fix those,” he said, experimentally wiggling the sandal around on his foot.

Kintsugi stood. “Be careful with those. I’m not that good at fixing them.” 

“I don’t think that’s true at all,” Minori said, a smile rising unbidden to his face. “I think you’re amazing.” 

To his surprise, Kintsugi’s cheeks flushed. “It’s no big deal,” he grumbled. “Hurry up. You wanted to get some food, right? And then we should find a good place to watch the fireworks.” 

“Wait, there are fireworks? You never said that! Hurry, Yuzuchii, the fireworks are the best part.” 

“Ah, yes, I was able to see them from the palace.” 

“You saw them from the palace? What, are you one of the maids?” 

“Well, something similar to that, I suppose.” 

“I hear that’s a pretty nice job. My friend has a sister who works there. She gets room and board, and the food’s really good.” 

“Is it? I mean, ah, it is.” 

Minori walked backwards, watching his two friends converse, grinning from ear to ear just because they were getting along so well. Kintsugi caught him looking, and gave him a curious, crooked smile. A small, honest smile rose to Minori’s lips, but he quickly hid it behind a broad grin and grabbed both of their hands. 

“Hurry up, slowpokes! We still have to get crepes,” he declared, as he pulled them both down the street, accompanied by Kintsugi’s insincere complaints about how many crepes Minori ate and Yuzuki’s questions on what, exactly, crepes were. 


	50. Interlude: Year 2, Part 2

“Morning, Shishou,” Sakura yawned as she walked into the main room. “You’re up early.” 

“It’s more that I’m up late. I never slept,” Tsubame said. 

Sakura took a seat next to him and smiled thankfully at the maid who brought her a tray of breakfast. Today’s breakfast was fish, rice, vegetables, and miso soup, as it often was. “You should get more sleep, Shishou.” 

“Yes, yes, Su scolded me already when they kicked me out of my office earlier,” Tsubame said. 

“We’re training together this afternoon, after all,” Sakura said, giving him a teasing grin. “If you’re tired, you’ll make it too easy for me.” 

Tsubame smiled, amused. “Say that again once you’ve actually managed to beat me.” 

“So, in a million years?” 

“Now, now, you’ve improved a great deal. You’ve stopped tripping over your own sword, for one thing.”

“Shishou! I was never that bad!” 

“You were close,” Tsubame said, a mischievous grin briefly flashing across his face.

Sakura grinned back at him; she enjoyed Tsubame far more like this, when it was just the two of them, or the two of them and Su. He was a lot more fun when his wife wasn’t around, not that Sakura could blame him. 

Although it was odd for Shiomi to miss a meal; usually, she was already there when Sakura arrived. “Did Shiomi-san eat already?” 

“I’m not sure,” Tsubame said. “She may be asleep, but I don’t know for sure. As I said, I didn’t sleep.” 

He picked at his fish for a moment, then sighed. “She’ll complain if I allow her to miss breakfast. I should go wake her.” 

Sakura stood. “It’s okay, Shishou, I’ll go. You’ve had a long day.” 

Tsubame smiled at her gratefully as she left, heading back to the part of the house where the bedrooms were located. Su’s bedroom was on one side of the hallway, next to the bath, while Tsubame and Shiomi’s room and Sakura’s room were on the other side. Sakura knocked tentatively on Tsubame’s door, and then harder when she didn’t get a response.

“Shiomi-san?” she called. “I’m coming in.” 

She almost expected the room to be empty—although she wasn’t sure where Shiomi would have gone, because she didn’t go out into the village often—but Shiomi was still in bed, lying under the covers with a sleep mask over her eyes. 

“Shiomi-san,” Sakura said, approaching the bed. “Breakfast is ready.” 

She reached out to nudge Shiomi awake, but hesitated with her fingers just above Shiomi’s shoulder. There was a strange scent in the room, one that reminded Sakura of the hospital, somehow. 

Slowly, Sakura pressed her fingers to Shiomi’s neck, right where her pulse should have been.

Her body was cold. 

Sakura stumbled back until she hit the wall. For a moment, all she could do was stare at Shiomi’s unmoving body. Eventually, she managed to tear her gaze away and stepped towards the door. As if in a daze, she made her way back to the main room. 

Tsubame didn’t even look up as she entered. He didn’t know what she knew. “Ah, you’re back. I hope my wife didn’t give you too much trouble.” 

Tsubame didn’t know that his wife was dead. 

“Shishou,” Sakura whispered. “I think maybe you should come to your bedroom.” 

Tsubame took one look at her face and was up in a flash, across the room before Sakura could even blink. She hurried after him, following to the bedroom he shared with Shiomi. He stopped short in the doorway, one hand on the doorway, staring at the bed. Slowly, he stepped forwards, and sat at the foot of the bed. Sakura waited in the doorway, unsure if she should stay or go. 

After several long moments, Tsubame stood. “I apologize,” he murmured. “I know you wished to visit your home and your family at least once more.” 

With that, he turned from the bed and walked back towards Sakura, a strange, faraway expression on his face. “I must contact the hospital,” he said. “And her family, in Nami—and a funeral has to be arranged.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Sakura asked. “Or Su, maybe?” 

“No. I—I don’t know. Possibly.” Tsubame wavered, a lost expression on his face. Sakura had never even imagined Tsubame making that type of face, like he was drifting in the middle of the sea with no way to make it to shore. 

Sakura gripped his arm, as if that would help ground him. “Let’s contact the hospital first,” Sakura said firmly. “And then the Daimyo of Nami, and then a priest.”

“Right,” Tsubame said, taking a deep breath. “Go to the hospital and tell them what has happened.” 

“Right,” Sakura said. “I’ll be back soon, Shishou.” 

Tsubame didn’t say anything as Sakura left, running through the streets towards the hospital. Around her, the village continued as if nothing had happened, only a few people turning towards her to wonder what had her in a hurry. Maybe people thought she was just late, or that she just wanted to run. 

The first people Sakura told what had happened were the receptionists at the hospital. Their eyes widened, their smiles faded, and they stood there in stunned silence for several minutes before bursting into motion. Sakura stood there, letting one of the nurses attempt to comfort her while everyone else rushed around. Not that Sakura needed to be comforted, really. She’d known Shiomi for all of a year, and hadn’t even liked her. 

Once all the doctors they needed had been gathered, they returned to Tsubame’s house. She and Tsubame stood on the sidelines as they tenderly gathered up the body and returned to the hospital. 

“They’ll do an autopsy, of course,” Tsubame said, still staring at the empty bed. “It’s standard procedure when someone as high-profile as her dies suddenly. They will look for signs she was poisoned.” 

“Do you think she was poisoned?” 

“No,” Tsubame said, simply. 

‘Natural causes’ was the conclusion the doctors came to, while Sakura was in the middle of assisting Tsubame with organizing the funeral. She and Su were charge of sending out all the letters, one for every person in Uzushio. 

The funeral was nearly extravagant, and the whole village turned up for it. Sakura stood at the front with Tsubame, alongside Su, Tsubame’s adopted son, and Tsubame’s adopted daughter and her family. A good deal of nobles from Nami came as well. They all wept loudly throughout the ceremony, but Tsubame didn’t shed a single tear. 

“Poor Tsubame-chan,” an old woman behind Sakura murmured. “Trying so hard to be strong. His wife was such a lovely woman.” 

“He must be devastated to lose the woman he loves so early in life,” her friend said. 

Most people seemed to be under the impression that Tsubame and Shiomi had some kind of grand romance, which hadn’t been at all the feeling Sakura had gotten while living with them. They hardly spoke to one another, for one thing, and there had always been a strained feeling between them. To listen to the villagers talk about it, however, you would think that Tsubame could hardly live without her. He seemed to be doing fine to Sakura. He was a little distant and subdued, but she figured that was normal when you lost someone who had been part of your life for so long, even if you didn’t like them. 

After the funeral, they all gathered at Tsubame’s house. Tsubame was immediately surrounded by people giving him their condolences, and somehow Sakura ended up in a corner with Su and Tsubame’s adopted son and daughter, Katsuro and Kasumi. 

They exchanged greetings and polite conversation for all of ten minutes before Kasumi said, “So, the old hag finally kicked the bucket.” 

“Nee-san,” Katsuro scolded. “You shouldn’t say things like that.” 

Kasumi shrugged. “We’re all thinking it. You didn’t like her any more than I did.” 

“ _ I didn’t think she was that bad, _ ” Su signed. 

“You only say that because she never tried to talk to you,” Kasumi said. “You should’ve heard the way she talked to Dad when they were alone.” 

“They were hardly alone,” Katsuro said. “We were there, and Nii-san.” 

Kasumi rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, we didn’t count, did we. She only paid attention to me when she wanted someone to complain to.” 

Sakura hadn’t liked Shiomi much either, but she couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable about speaking ill of the dead. “I . . . I didn’t know you had an older brother.” 

“Well, Hyousuke ran back to Kiri years ago, back when we were still kids,” Kasumi said. “We figured he’d died, until he brought the rebels here.” 

Now that they mentioned it, Sakura did recall a man who had exchanged some stiff greetings with Tsubame the last time they had gone to visit the Kiri rebels, who were encamped on a nearby island. 

“ _ I’ve never met him, _ ” Su signed. 

“He left long before I took on your team,” Katsuro said. 

“Shiomi never paid much attention to him, either,” Kasumi said. “My theory is that we pissed her off because we reminded her of how Tsubame wouldn’t have kids with her.” 

“Nee-san,” Katsuro hissed. “We shouldn’t air their private business.” 

“It’s just his apprentices,” Kasumi said. “They probably know it all already. And it’s not like anyone here is paying attention to us. We’re not Uzumaki, after all.” 

“They’re just busy paying their condolences to Father,” Katsuro said. “Which is exactly what they should be doing.” 

“C’mon, Dad’s probably celebrating internally,” Kasumi scoffed. “You know they hated each other.” 

“They didn’t hate each other,” Katsuro said. “They didn’t get along, but they still respected each other.” 

Kasumi rolled her eyes. “Sure, whatever you say,  _ Dad _ . You know that line was just bullshit to stop us from being little shits to her, right?” 

“I was never a little shit,” Katsuro said. “That was all you.” 

“Oh, yeah, sure, like you didn’t put sea urchins in her shoes right alongside me.” 

“At least I didn’t put fish in the back of her underwear drawer—” 

The two of them continued to bicker while Sakura practiced her Uzushio sign language with Su, until Kasumi realized she had to go pick up her youngest from the Academy and Katsuro realized he was almost late to meet with his genin team. Su was pulled away to speak with the Daimyo of Nami and his family, leaving Sakura alone in the corner of the room. She quickly grew tired of watching people give their condolences to a stoic Tsubame, and left to go work on her latest fuinjutsu project. 

She ended up so embroiled in the details of the calculations for the seal that when she stopped, certain that it had only been an hour or two, she was shocked to find that it was actually past midnight and she had completely missed dinner. She could only hope that the maids had left some dinner in the kitchen for her. 

She had expected the house to be completely dark and silent at that time of night, but found that the light was still on in the main room. She slid open the door to find Tsubame sitting alone, a mostly full bottle of sake in front of him. 

“Ah, Sakura,” he said, glancing up from his cup. It was still full, like he had poured himself a cup and then hadn’t been able to drink it. 

“Hey, Shishou,” she said, walking over and taking a seat next to him. “Are you . . . how are you doing?” 

“I’m fine,” he said. She glanced, reflexively, at the untouched sake, and Tsubame smiled mirthlessly. “Ah. It doesn’t taste like it used to.” 

Sakura stared down at the table, unsure what to say. Ino would probably know something good to say in a situation like this, but Sakura couldn’t think of what exactly she would say. 

The soft plink of liquid dripping onto liquid, followed by a soft “ _ oh” _ made her look up. Tsubame blinked in surprise, the motion sending more tears trickling down his face, and reached up to touch his face. 

He stared down at the dampness lingering on his fingers. “I don’t know why I’m crying,” he said. “I never even liked her.” 

Tentatively, Sakura reached over to put a hand on his arm. “It’s okay to be sad, Shishou, even if you didn’t like her. You were married for a long time.” 

Tsubame let out a harsh laugh. “Sad? I suppose I should be feeling sad, shouldn’t I. She was my wife—we were married for years, since I was barely more than a child—she has been my constant companion for thirty years. Losing someone like that . . . that would make anyone sad. So why—why do I feel _ so damn relieved _ ?” 

His voice choked, and he dropped his head into his hands, his hair falling over his face like a curtain. He wasn’t crying, at least not audibly, but neither did he say anything else. Sakura, unsure what to say, said nothing, and instead simply sat at his side. 

At last, Tsubame raised his head, any hint of emotion drained from his face. “I apologize, Sakura. I don’t mean to burden you. You should return to bed, as should I.” 

He stood up, but didn’t leave the room, the lost expression he had worn earlier back on his face. Before she could stop herself, Sakura stood and threw her arms around him. Tsubame stumbled back, his arms raising up but only hovering in the air, as if he wasn’t quite sure what to do when someone hugged him. 

After a few moments, he wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders, patting her head with the other hand. “You’re a good child, Sakura,” he murmured. “Now, to bed.” 

Sakura nodded, trying her best not to sniffle. “Yes, Shishou.” 

Tsubame smiled at her tenderly and patted her head once more before ushering her towards the door, while he remained in the room to clean up the sake. Sakura returned to her room and slipped under the covers. After a few moments, she heard Tsubame enter his bedroom and prepare for bed. 

Sakura lay in bed, counting the beads on the beaded curtain in the window, and tried to fall asleep. 

***

Sasuke had gotten a lot nicer since they had first become teammates. Back then, Hinata couldn’t have even imagined walking side-by-side with him, much less doing so on a daily basis, and especially not while having a comfortable conversation. 

And yet, somehow, here they were, walking down the street together, passing the time with conversation, as they did almost every day. 

“Neji hasn’t been training with us as frequently,” Sasuke said. “Even though I’ve seen him around the village.” 

“Neji-nii-san is taking the jounin exams,” Hinata said. “He’s been training a lot with Ji-san . . .” 

Sasuke clicked his tongue. “Him too? Are he and Heiwa training together?” 

“Ah, I don’t think Heiwa-chan knows Neji-nii-san is taking the exams as well,” Hinata said. “She told me she was training with Sandaime-sama every day, and Kakashi-sensei and Narumi-san, too. She’s trying to master another element . . .” 

“You should train with her more. Most jounin have two elements mastered,” Sasuke said. 

Hinata nodded; Sasuke, she knew, was already skilled at Lightning and Fire, and didn’t have far to go before he had mastered them. Hinata knew some Water jutsu, but she was hardly a master. If not for being part of the military police, which was still keeping them too busy to train sufficiently for the jounin exams, she had a feeling Sasuke would be training for the jounin exams as well. 

Sasuke scowled irritably. “I can’t wait until this year is over.”

Hinata had to agree; as rookies on the Military Police, on top of their regular patrol duties, they also had to take various classes and training programs, and had more office duties than the other officers. More than once, Hinata and Sasuke had ended up collapsing in the break room rather than heading home for the few, brief hours they had before their next shift. Sasuke had a bit more time to train than her, since Hinata was taking an advanced class at the Medical School as well, but even he wasn’t able to get in sufficient training to pass the exams. 

“Water jutsu would suit you,” Sasuke said. “And Heiwa knows a lot of Water jutsu.” 

“Y-you think it would suit me?” Hinata said; she hadn’t particularly thought than any style of jutsu would suit her. Taijutsu barely suited her as it was, and she was supposed to be good at that. 

Sasuke nodded. “Or Earth, maybe. Water jutsu has a lot of techniques that are defensive, or meant for restraining the enemy. The Water Prison jutsu, for example. Earth jutsu has similar techniques based around restraining the enemy. What’s your chakra nature?” 

“Ah, I’m not sure . . .” Hinata had never thought that it would be relevant; chuunin had always seemed like it would be out of her reach, and jounin had been an impossible dream. 

“Sensei or my mother will be able to get some chakra paper,” Sasuke said. 

As they approached the Military Police Headquarters, both of them slowed to a stop. Their patrols always ended here, right where they had begun. Hinata held in a yawn; it was early in the afternoon, but she and Sasuke had started their day at midnight, with an early morning patrol followed by a shift manning the phones in the office. None of the officers liked manning the phones, which meant that the duty always landed on the rookies. 

“I’ll go ask her right now,” Sasuke said, heading towards the doors. 

“See you tomorrow,” Hinata said, quietly. Sasuke didn’t respond; Hinata had been speaking too quietly for him to hear, of course. 

Left on her own, Hinata started the familiar walk back to the Hyuuga compound. Perhaps she would have time for a bath before having a meal and going to sleep. Hinata fantasized about the relaxing hot water all the way to the gates of the compound, where her hopes were promptly crushed. 

“Hiashi-sama expects you in the training room.” 

Resigned to her fate, Hinata trudged to the training room. Hinata hadn’t trained under her father’s eye much since joining the Military Police with Sasuke; she had a feeling that her father was more disappointed in her than usual. When she arrived, her father was already sitting in his usual position at the head of the room, while Hanabi ran through the kata of the Gentle Fist style, her movements as clean and precise as always. 

Her father’s eyes landed on her. “There you are. Hanabi, face your sister.” 

Hinata stood across from Hanabi, nervous sweat already trickling down her back. She hadn’t trained with Hanabi in some time; usually, Neji was deemed a more appropriate opponent for her. He must have been busy elsewhere, training for his jounin exams, if they were resorting to using Hinata. 

More than anyone, Hinata hated fighting Hanabi. Everytime they fought, Hinata couldn’t help but think of everything that could go wrong. The Gentle Fist was a harsh style, and Hanabi was so small—she hadn’t even graduated from the Academy yet. Every time she saw an opening, she just couldn’t bring herself to take it. Hanabi was her little sister—Hinata didn’t want to hurt her. 

“Begin.” 

Hanabi launched forward, putting Hinata immediately on the defensive. Hanabi had gotten stronger recently; Hinata didn’t see as many openings as she had the last time they had fought. She saw a few openings, here and there, but each time she couldn’t bring herself to go through with the attack. A strike to the stomach could cause serious internal bleeding. A strike to the chest could injure her heart or lungs. 

Out of the corner of her eye, Hinata noticed the door opening and another member of the clan poking their head in. Her father turned around to speak with them, not even bothering to pay attention to the fight. He already knew how it would end. 

“Fight me seriously!” Hanabi yelled. 

Hinata focused on Hanabi as the girl ran towards her, one hand slightly outstretched in preparation to attack. On instinct, Hinata moved, stepping to the side and turning so that she and Hanabi were side by side, Hinata’s hand cupping Hanabi’s wrist. Hinata ducked under Hanabi’s outstretched arm, keeping hold of her wrist, and spun around so that they were facing opposite directions again. Hanabi’s arm was bent double, her elbow pointed towards the ceiling and her fingers towards the ground, Hinata’s hands keeping her wrist in place just behind her shoulder. Hinata bent her knees, dropping her body just slightly, and Hanabi was forced to the ground. While she was still too stunned to react, Hinata quickly pinned her to the ground, reaching to disarm her on reflex. 

It wasn’t until her fingers brushed against nothing that Hinata realized exactly what she had done: disarmed Hanabi like she would disarm someone attacking her with a weapon while she was on patrol. 

Slowly, Hinata released Hanabi’s arm and stepped back. Hanabi didn’t get up, even though Hinata could tell she wasn’t hurt at all; she just stared at Hinata with a shocked expression on her face. 

“You  _ beat  _ me,” Hanabi said. 

“Hanabi,” their father said. 

Both girls turned to face him. A tremor of fear went through Hinata; now that she had lost to Hinata, the useless one, would Hanabi be treated harshly? 

Their father’s face was as impassive as it ever was. “You are dismissed.” 

Hanabi bowed and quickly left the room, staring down at her hand as if it had betrayed her. 

“Hinata,” their father said, before Hinata could so much as step towards the door. “That was not the Gentle Fist style.” 

“Forgive me, Father, but you did not specify that I had to use the Gentle Fist style.” 

Hiashi said nothing. Hinata herself was stunned by her boldness—of course she was expected to use the Gentle Fist style; she was a Hyuuga, after all. She ducked her head, preparing herself to be scolded. 

“Dismissed.” 

Hinata looked up, surprised, so see her father rise to his feet and step through one of the sliding doors. She was so shocked that she wasn’t being scolded that she just stood there in the middle of the training room until another door slid open. 

She jumped. “Ah, sorry, I was just leaving . . .” 

Hinata trailed off upon seeing Hanabi’s face peeking through the door. “Nee-chan,” Hanabi said. “Show me how to do that!” 

“O-oh,” Hinata said. “If you really want to, then . . . I can show you . . .” 

Hanabi nodded resolutely and walked into the room, shutting the door behind her. “You were really cool, Nee-chan!” 

Hinata stared at her, wide-eyed. She had never in her life been described as cool. “I-it didn’t hurt, did it?” 

“Not at all! I was really surprised,” Hanabi said. “It was just, woosh, and then I was on the ground! I want to learn how to do that.” 

“I . . . I know a few others like that, too,” Hinata said. 

“Really? You have to show me! 

For a moment, Hinata could only stare at Hanabi. Hanabi had never once asked for Hinata to show her something, even when they were children. They had gotten along well when they were younger, but as time passed Hanabi had seemed to regard Hinata as just as much of a failure as their father did. Hinata had never dreamed that Hanabi would look at her with such an expression, bright-eyed and admiring. 

And, for once, Hinata wasn’t afraid of facing her. She had taken an opening that Hanabi had given her, and Hanabi hadn’t been hurt. Hinata could fight her without hurting her. 

A small smile spread across her face, even as she took a defensive stance. “O-okay, run at me like you did before. Like you were going to attack me with a weapon or a strike to the torso.” 

Hanabi stood across from her, a determined expression on her face. “Right. Prepare yourself!” 


	51. Interlude: Year 2, Part 3

The jounin exams were held in an unassuming building, the sort that Heiwa walked past without even thinking about twice on most days. Yet, as she stared up at the empty windows, she couldn’t help but feel dread settle in the pit of her stomach. She took a deep breath to settle her nerves, and then another. 

“Ah. Heiwa.” 

Heiwa turned, mildly surprised to see Neji coming to a stop just behind her. “Neji. You’re taking the exams?” 

Neji nodded once before resuming his walk towards the doors. “I am. I was not aware that you were as well.” 

Heiwa had been rather busy the past few months since signing up for the exams; she had spent all of her time with the Sandaime, working on mastering the various elements. She had worked on the Water Release throughout the Academy and had started the Earth release shortly after graduating, and had started on Fire release around the time of the Chuunin exams. Since then, she had additionally started working on Wind and Lightning. So far, she had mastered Water and Earth, and she was making progress on Fire. Wind and Lightning remained frustratingly out of her reach. 

Again, she wondered if she should have waited to completely master Fire before taking the jounin exams. She quickly pushed that thought out of her mind; most jounin only mastered two elements, and there was no time for doubts now. She wasn’t backing out—especially now that Neji had already seen her there. 

She followed Neji into the building before he could get too far ahead. A few jounin gave them conflicting directions to the room, but she and Neji eventually managed to find the correct location. To her surprise, Neji wasn’t the only person she knew taking the exam, as her brother’s teammate waved at them cheerfully when they entered. 

“Neji! I didn’t know you were taking the exam,” Shin said. “And Heiwa, too. It’s been a while! I tried to get Nawanuke to take the exam with me, but he said no.” 

Knowing Nawanuke, Heiwa suspected he had said it much more rudely. She wasn’t surprised he had refused; he had only passed the chuunin exams six months ago and didn’t seem all that interested in progressing further up the ranks. Kogane had suggested that Nawanuke start training for the jounin exams, and Nawanuke had threatened to cram dirty socks down his throat. 

Heiwa took a seat at the desk next to Shin’s, while Neji took the remaining desk behind her. The moment she sat down, a jounin walked to the front of the room and sat down. Heiwa glanced at the clock, and saw that it was nearly time for the test to begin. The jounin didn’t have any papers, however, and didn’t say a single word about starting the test, even when the official start time had passed. She looked in the desk, but didn’t see anything there, either. 

Oh—of course. 

Heiwa formed a seal, releasing a burst of chakra. A thin stack of papers appeared on her desk along with a paper, genjutsu successfully dispelled. In front of her, a chuunin was detaching his test from the underside of his desk. Another was pulling paper cranes out of his oversized sleeves and unfolding them to reveal the test papers, looking increasingly bewildered as he discovered more and more of them. Beside her, Shin had stood on his desk to get his test down from the ceiling. 

There was no pencil provided, but luckily Heiwa had thought to bring her own. She got to work on the exam quickly; there were some interesting ethical questions included, along with some battle scenarios that she probably spent more time on than necessary, but other than that the test was fairly straightforward, if more complicated than anything they had learned in the Academy. 

She finished with time to spare, and spent the remaining time reviewing her answers on some of the trickier problems. Once the first stage of the exam was over, she was escorted to a room where several jounin—the proctors for the next stage of the exam—waited for her. 

As soon as she saw who was waiting for her, Heiwa nearly turned on her heel and walked right out of there. 

Hana Inuzuka and Izumi Uchiha sat on a couch, Hana’s ninken lying on the floor at her feet. Heiwa didn’t know either of them well, but she wasn’t particularly bothered by their presence. Shizune was a welcome sight; Heiwa knew her to be reliable and easy to work with, and it was good to have a healer as skilled as she was in case something went wrong during the test. 

And then there was Kogane. 

Hana pumped her fist. “Nice! Two out of three Senju sibs. Or is it three out of four?” 

“I only have two siblings,” Kogane said. 

“Yeah, but counting Shizune.” 

“Shizune is my cousin, not my sibling.” 

“So? You guys were basically raised together, right? That makes you siblings in my book!” 

“Being raised in the same house does not make us siblings.” 

“So mean!” Hana teased. “Think about how poor Shizune feels, hearing you deny your bonds of siblinghood.” 

Kogane stared at Hana blankly. Shizune seemed to be trying very hard to keep a straight face. 

Heiwa left them to it; she knew from experience that trying to keep too tight of a rein on your squadmates tended to backfire. It was better to allow them to let off steam before the mission, and only step in if the bickering continued once the mission started. 

The door slammed open, and Ibiki Morino stepped through. “Listen up, because I’m only saying this once!” he barked. 

Heiwa straightened up, focusing on every word out of his mouth. 

“Your mission is to intercept a squad of enemy shinobi,” Ibiki said. “A group of shinobi are headed to the village, and you are to stop them. Questions?” 

Heiwa went through the usual questions—how many, any intelligence on their capabilities, from what direction, any intelligence on particular individuals, and so on—as she ran through possible courses of action in her head. The briefing had been bare-bones, obviously purposefully so considering that most missions came with extensive briefings beforehand. Ibiki answered each of her questions in turn, except for a few of the more detailed ones that she wouldn’t expect even an actual briefing to answer. 

It was enough to make a few preliminary plans, which they could expand on once they saw the lay of the land. The team was stacked with close-range specialists and medics; Hana, Izumi, and Kogane all preferred to use taijutsu or close-range weapons in battle, and Hana, Shizune, and Kogane all used medical techniques. Aside from that, Hana was skilled at tracking, Izumi was decent with genjutsu, and Kogane could use both Water and Earth ninjutsu. Kogane also had his Spirit Release technique, of course, but Heiwa would prefer not to have him use it unless she had to. It left his body vulnerable, and his body deteriorated while his spirit was gone. 

Overall, the mock mission went well. Hana tracked the enemy, Izumi had cleverly applied a genjutsu to the surroundings to make them think they were proceeding when really they were running in circles, Heiwa and Kogane caught them in a dome of rock, and Shizune dropped an airborne poison into the dome to knock them out. There were some issues, of course—Hana and Izumi had spent the entire mission teasing Kogane, and Kogane had taken every single one of her orders exceedingly literally, and Shizune had nearly gotten skewered by the unexpected reinforcements that had popped out of the ground—but they’d managed to keep it together. 

By the time they reported back to Ibiki, bearing tidings of having taken out the enemy and the enemy reinforcements, Heiwa was a little worse for wear but ready to move on to the next phase of the exam. 

She was escorted to a waiting room, where Shin and Neji were waiting, Shin prattling on cheerfully while Neji sat in stony silence. 

“Heiwa-chan!” Shin cheered as she entered. “How did your mock mission go?” 

“It went well,” she said. “How were yours?” 

Shin made a face. “Ugh. I had to work with some old colleagues of mine who I don’t really get along with. Ibiki sure is a cruel guy.” 

“It went well,” Neji said. 

Shin made a face and nudged Neji with his foot. “C’mon, details! Who was on your team?” 

“A main branch Hyuuga,” Neji said, in a futile effort to get Shin to leave him alone. “And an Uchiha.” 

“Yeah, I got an Uchiha, too,” Shin said. “And a cute Nara who works at the hospital. I got their pager number!” 

Neji looked like he was praying for the floor to open up and swallow up either Shin or himself. Heiwa decided to take mercy on him and contribute to the conversation. 

“My brother was on my team,” Heiwa said. “And Shizune.” 

Shin nodded. “Oh, Kogane, huh? How’s his health these days?” 

Heiwa looked at him in some surprise; she hadn’t been aware that Shin knew Kogane well. But of course, he had to have some knowledge of the problems that came along with the Spirit Release from being Nawanuke’s teammate. “He’s doing well. He’s been doing more work with the hospital, though, instead of going on missions.” 

“Yeah, I heard he’d decided not to join up with ANBU again,” Shin said. “Not surprising, I guess, considering the health thing.” 

Heiwa’s eyes widened. Shin blinked at her, and then grinned sheepishly. “Oh, whoops, I figured you would’ve known that, being his sister and all. Uh, forget I said anything. Hey, did I ever tell you about what happened with Nawanuke and the Kazekage’s son? The redhead, not the one with the puppet, I mean.” 

“No,” Heiwa said. 

“Haha, really? Wow, it was great, I totally should have told you,” Shin said, his hands flying through the air like he was trying to paint a picture with nothing but motion. Before he could continue, however, the door opened. 

“Shin,” the Jounin proctor called. “Follow me.” 

Shin hopped to his feet, wobbling slightly on an ankle that Heiwa noticed was tightly bandaged. “That’s me! Good luck, you two!” 

The door closed behind him as he waved cheerfully at them, leaving Neji and Heiwa alone. They sat in silence for a moment; Heiwa felt the urge to break the silence, but wasn’t sure what to say

“A shame,” Neji said. “I was quite interested in hearing what happened between Nawanuke and the Kazekage’s son.” 

Heiwa snorted. “Knowing Nawanuke, something embarrassing.” 

A small smile quirked up the corner of his lips. Heiwa pulled one of her feet up onto the seat and rested her chin on her bent knee. “Who do you think you’ll have to fight? Minori told me he had to fight Obito during his exam.” 

“My father or my uncle,” Neji said immediately. “As Hyuuga, they are best equipped to counter my techniques, and would be the most psychologically stressful to fight. Alternatively, an Uchiha, to pit the Sharingan against the Byakugan. The Byakugan does not have a good defense against genjutsu created by the Sharingan. And you?” 

“I would have said Kogane or Shizune, but they were with me in the mock mission, and typically participants in the mock mission aren’t in the one-on-one fight,” Heiwa said. Neji nodded in understanding; he’d most likely done the same research into the jounin exam as she had. “My father, perhaps; my mother tends to be on hand in case of a serious injury, so I doubt they would have me fight her. If not one of them, I would guess Kakashi-sensei or Obito-sensei.” 

Neji nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose that if they choose not to have my father or my uncle, they may have Gai-sensei. He, too, would be a difficult opponent for me.” 

“I assume you have a plan for your fight?” Heiwa said. 

“I do,” Neji said. “I plan to exhibit the main house Gentle Fist techniques I have mastered, of course, along with some of the taijutsu techniques I learned from Gai-sensei. I would also like to exhibit some ninjutsu. I expect that you will focus on ninjutsu?” 

Heiwa nodded. “Water, Earth, and Fire. And some taijutsu as well—I’ve improved since you started training with me.” Her taijutsu was still nowhere near as good as any of her teammates’ taijutsu, let alone Neji’s, but it was still leagues better than her genjutsu. “What ninjutsu have you been working on?” 

“Just Fire, for now,” Neji said. “I have been focused on my taijutsu. But I have been considering adding Water to my repertoire. You and I should train together once the exam is over.” 

Heiwa couldn’t hold back a pleased smile. “I’d like that.” 

Neji smiled at her in return. “As would I.” 

Her heart felt like it was fluttering in her chest—just her imagination, Heiwa told herself sternly. This wasn’t the time to be getting distracted, especially not by handsome boys.

Thankfully, the door opened, drawing Neji’s attention away. “Senju,” the Jounin called. 

Heiwa stood. “Good luck on your exam,” she told Neji as she headed to the door. 

“You as well,” Neji replied, giving her a polite nod. 

Heiwa followed the proctor to an arena, similar to the one that had been used for the preliminary elimination rounds of the chuunin exam but much smaller. A table had been set up on the balcony that ran around the room; Sakumo sat behind it, along with Shikaku, Inoichi, Ibiki, and Narumi. Tsunade stood to the side, as Heiwa had expected. 

After a few moments, Sakumo looked up from the table and nodded. “We’re ready. Send him in.” 

Him—her father, maybe? Heiwa didn’t have long to wonder, as another door to the room opened and Shisui jumped down into the arena. 

He grinned and saluted her playfully. “Long time no see, Heiwa-chan! Hope my little cousin hasn’t been too much of a pain.” 

Heiwa hadn’t been expecting Shisui, of all people, but she had to admit it was a good match-up. Shisui was skilled with genjutsu and taijutsu, two of her weaknesses, and preferred close-range combat where she preferred remain at a distance from her opponents. And then he had the Sharingan, which was capable of copying any of the ninjutsu techniques she used against him. She would have to keep her distance and avoid letting him get too close. The Headhunter technique, perhaps, would be a good technique to implement—show off an Earth technique and get away from Shisui at the same time. First, however, she would want to do something to limit Shisui’s visibility; the Sandaime had taught her Kiri’s Hiding in Mist technique, and although she wasn’t sure if she could get the mist thick enough to counter the Sharingan, it was worth a shot.

“Begin!” 

Heiwa’s hands flew through the seals for the Hiding in Mist technique, using as much chakra as she dared in the hopes of thickening the mist. As soon as she could no longer see Shisui, she seagued into the next technique, vanishing under the ground as she completed the seals. She traveled through the ground, heading for Shisui’s location, and as soon as she had reached him seized his ankle and pulled him down into the ground before he could react. 

She climbed out of the ground, spitting dirt out of her mouth. The mist had been burned away, a few scorch marks marring the floor as evidence of the technique Shisui had used, so she could clearly see Shisui’s head at her feet. “Not bad,” Shisui said. “But the ground here’s a little too soft to make this an effective technique.” 

He vanished in a puff of smoke, one of her pouches falling to the ground in his place. She stumbled back as he appeared at her side, his tanto slashing against her vest. “Quick reaction time! Not bad. But how will you handle this?” 

Then, in the time it took her to blink, Shisui stood in three places at once. She’d seen his shunshin in action before and had seen how even his afterimages could cause physical damage, but she’d never had to defend against it herself. There was no telling which of them was the real Shisui, no way to know which attacks might harm her and which would do nothing at all, so she did her best to evade when possible and block whenever not. Sasuke’s expertise with weapons had helped her improve her skill with a kunai, at least, so she managed to hold her own, even though she was aware that Shisui was slowly but surely backing her up against the wall. 

Heiwa hissed in pain, shifting her arm further away from Shisui. She’d dodged—she knew she had dodged—but the blood dripping from the cut on her arm said otherwise. Shisui didn’t give her a chance to recover, a tanto coming at her from both sides. Heiwa jumped back, throwing the kunai at one of the versions of Shisui and hitting nothing, and formed a seal with her hands. She released a burst of chakra and the scene shifted slightly as the genjutsu dispersed, putting Shisui closer to her than he had been before. 

Heiwa’s hands flew through a series of seals, Shisui’s eyes widening slightly in surprise as he recognized the technique. Hot flames poured from her mouth, forming a ball in the air between them. She sank into the ground, letting an earth clone take her place. 

“Sasuke taught you that, I take it?” Shisui said; she had suspected that the Great Fireball wouldn’t do much to dissuade him. “I’m surprised! Giving out clan techniques, tsk tsk.” 

“You don’t have to have a Sharingan to perform the Great Fireball Technique,” her clone said. 

“Well, no, of course not! But it’s still an Uchiha technique. The Sharingan isn’t the end-all, be-all of being an Uchiha after all. Now, how’s your taijutsu?” 

Heiwa emerged from the ground behind Shisui to find her clone engaged in a fierce taijutsu battle, targeting the tenketsu points that even someone without a Byakugan could memorize the rough locations of. It was strange, watching herself fight—she could make out bits of the style favored by the Uchiha as well as a few movements clearly stolen from the Gentle Fist—but Heiwa didn’t allow herself to get distracted as she quietly slipped a kunai from her pouch. The clone could see her, and was already pushing harder to create an opening for Heiwa. 

Something pressed into her back. 

“You’re not the only one who can make solid clones, Heiwa-chan,” Shisui murmured in her ear. “Now, I’ve got my tanto aimed right at your spine. One move and I can kill you in an instant. So how about you surrender now, hm?” 

Heiwa’s eyes slid up to the table on the balcony. Her mother’s mouth was pressed into a thin line, her knuckles white as she gripped the rail of the balcony. Ibiki leaned in to whisper something to Inoichi, who shook his head in response and closed the folder he had been looking at. Shikaku stared down at her evenly, a glimmer of interest in his eyes. 

Shisui’s tanto pressed harder against her back, digging into the thick material of the vest. 

Heiwa spun, pulling a kunai from her pouch as she moved. The tanto sliced into her side, drawing a line of white-hot pain, but Heiwa didn’t stop as she drove the kunai into Shisui’s upper arm. Just a few inches to the side, and she would have pierced his heart. A few more, and she could have reached his throat. 

She looked up, meeting Shisui’s eyes; judging by the look on his face, he knew as well as she did that she could have killed him in that moment. “Not bad, Heiwa-chan,” he said. “Risky, but not bad.” 

His eyes turned Sharingan-red, and Heiwa’s world went black. 

She woke to the pure white of the hospital. A bandage had been tied around her waist, where Shisui’s tanto had sliced into her, and a smaller bandage had been placed on the cut on her arm. She must have been healed already, because the injuries only felt a little tender when she pressed on them. 

The door to her hospital room opened to admit both Sakumo and Shisui. Sakumo smiled warmly at her and held out a folder. “Good, you’re awake. Congratulations, Heiwa. You’re officially a jounin.” 

For a moment, Heiwa could only stare at him. He held out the folder further, and she quickly accepted it and opened it, eager to read the details of her assessment. Sakumo chuckled. “I’ll leave you to it; I have to head to the next participant. Oh, but you might not want to get too into reading that just yet.” Sakumo waved and headed back to the door. Shisui didn’t go with him, instead pulling up a chair and taking a seat by the side of the bed. “I’ll leave you two alone!” 

Heiwa wanted to read her assessment, but reluctantly set it aside and focused on Shisui. “What did you want to talk about?” 

Shisui looked at her with uncharacteristic seriousness. Even in the midst of battle, he’d been cheerful, as if he’d wanted to set her at ease. Now, his seriousness made her sit up straighter, even if it made her still-tender injuries twinge uncomfortably. 

“Do you have any job prospects lined up?” he asked. 

Heiwa blinked at him; of all the things he could have said, that wasn’t what she had expected. “No, not yet. I was planning to keep working on mastering all the elemental releases.” 

“I’m going to be Hokage in a little over a year,” he said. “I want you on my staff.” 

“I—me?” Heiwa said. The thought had occurred to her, of course, of taking some position in the administration to get more experience, but she had thought that would still be some years off, once she had spent some time as a jounin. And to be on the Hokage’s staff, right off the bat, was a thought reserved for idle daydreams. 

Shisui nodded. “Itachi already agreed to be my aide, but that’s a lot of work for one person. Itachi and I have a lot of plans for the village. We talked it over, and we agreed you would be the best person to ask.” 

“But I only just became a jounin. Wouldn’t you want someone more experienced? Someone older?” 

“You’ll be seventeen by the time I’m Hokage and you’ll have over a year of experience as a jounin,” Shisui said. “That’s good enough for me. I don’t want someone older or more experienced. I’m rebuilding my staff from the ground up; I’m getting rid of the old crowd, the ones who are stuck in their ways and value tradition over progress. Nothing’s really changed since the days of the Nidaime, and if you ask me, it needs to.” 

“I agree,” Heiwa murmured. “I always—I always planned on changing things.” 

“I know,” Shisui said. “Sasuke told me. You plan on being Hokage, right?” 

“Sasuke did?” Heiwa said, surprised. She talked about her ideas, yes, but usually she discussed them with Neji or Hinata when they went out as a group after training together. She hadn’t been aware that Sasuke listened to what she had to say. 

Shisui laughed. “I know, I was surprised too! Sasuke doesn’t care about politics that much. But he mentioned it to Itachi when we were talking about things over dinner once, and it’s been on my mind ever since. You want to change things, and so do Itachi and I, so how about we do it together?” 

Heiwa didn’t even need to consider it before nodding in agreement. “I suppose it will be good practice for when I’m Hokage after you.” 

Shisui laughed, delighted. “That’s the spirit! Itachi and I have regular meetings, I’ll send you the details later. You should rest for now. I look forward to working with you, Heiwa.” 

Shisui left, but Heiwa wasn’t alone for more than a minute before a medic swept into the room. Heiwa gave up on reading her assessment until she was home, and allowed the medic to fuss over her until she finally declared that Heiwa was allowed to leave. 

“Heiwa-chan! Heiwa, over here!” a voice called as she entered the waiting room. She turned to find Shin sitting on one of the many benches in the room, Nawanuke sitting beside him with a fierce scowl on his face. 

“Shin. How did your fight go?” Heiwa asked. 

“Pretty good,” Shin said, gesturing to his ankle, which was now bandaged up even more thoroughly than it had been when she last saw him. “I managed to fuck up my ankle, though, so I’m off mission duty for the next few weeks. So now I get to keep Nawa company!” 

“Go away,” Nawanuke groused. “I don’t want your company.” 

“He’s just grumpy because all the exam contestants taking up hospital space means that he needs to wait longer for his appointment,” Shin whispered loudly to Heiwa. 

Nawanuke kicked him. “Quit blabbing about things that are none of your business.” 

“It’s not like I’m talking to a stranger, she’s your sister!” Shin said. “She probably knows more than I do.” 

“She was leaving anyways,” Nawanuke said. 

Heiwa considered him for a moment, and then took a seat at Shin’s side. “Actually, I think I’ll stay. Someone should make sure you behave.” 

“Oh, fuck off,” Nawanuke said. “Don’t you have to go be perfect somewhere else?” 

“And deny you my presence? Why would I do that?” 

Nawanuke glared at her; Heiwa smirked to herself, knowing that if not for Shin in between them, he probably would have kicked her chair. After a moment, he huffed in frustration and sank down into his chair, arms crossed over his chest. Heiwa glanced at him out of the corner of her eye; it wasn’t like Nawanuke to back down from a fight. His forehead was slightly creased in discomfort. 

Shin, who had been looking at Nawanuke as well, glanced at her and gave her a slight nod before standing. “I’m gonna hit up the vending machine. You two want anything?” 

“I’m good,” Nawanuke said. 

Heiwa shook her head. “I’m fine, thank you.” 

Once Shin was gone, Heiwa slid into the spot he had just vacated. “How are you feeling?” she asked under her breath. 

“I’m fucking fine, piss off!” Nawanuke snapped. 

Heiwa rolled her eyes. “Well, if you’re being your usual charming self, then you must be fine.” 

“Nawanuke!” Shizune called, stepping into the room. She looked slightly tired, but otherwise none the worse for wear. “Sorry for the wait, I can take you now.” 

“Finally,” Nawanuke muttered, as he got up from his seat and stomped towards the hallway. 

Shizune gave him a reproachful look. “You wouldn’t have had to wait so long if you would let Kogane treat you. And you shouldn’t skip your appointments. You know that only makes it worse.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I get it already.” 

Shin reappeared not long after Shizune and Nawanuke vanished down the hallway, bearing two candy bars. Heiwa accepted the one he held out to her, even though she wasn’t the biggest fan of sweets. “Shizune came and got him? That’s good,” Shin said. 

“How did you know it was Shizune?” Heiwa asked, even though she had a feeling she knew. 

Shin grinned at her. “I might have run into her on my way to the vending machine.” 

“Of course you did. I’m sure it was a completely coincidental meeting,” Heiwa said. 

“Yup!” Shin’s eyes focused on something over her shoulder. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’m going to go find Sai so we can celebrate my new Jounin-hood. Have fun!” 

“Have fun?” Heiwa echoed, turning to look at him as he sped past her. 

Neji stood on the other side of the waiting room, looking slightly bewildered by Shin’s hasty exit from the hospital. 

“I’m uncertain if he should be moving that quickly with an injured ankle,” Neji noted as she approached him. 

“I’m sure he’s fine. They do good work here,” Heiwa said. She wasn’t sure why she even said it; of course Neji knew what the medics were capable of. Coming across Neji so unexpectedly seemed to have taken away her usual talent with words. 

Neji nodded. 

Heiwa searched for another conversation topic; her eyes landed on the folder he held in his hands. “How did—” 

“Your exam—” 

They both broke off at the same time, smiling at each other in sheepish embarrassment. “I passed,” Heiwa said, holding up her assessment. “I haven’t had a chance to look at the details, though.” 

“I passed as well,” Neji agreed. “But I haven’t had a chance either. Would you . . . there is a restaurant nearby with a quiet atmosphere suitable for reading reports. Have you eaten? I mean—of course you haven’t, you have been in the hospital as well.” 

“I could eat,” Heiwa agreed. “Dinner?” 

Neji smiled at her, and her heart thrummed in her chest. “Dinner.” 

***

“Aaaand there we go.” With one final flourish of the brush, Narumi finished his most recent fuinjutsu project, a new tracking seal for the ANBU. He set it aside and, with a small groan, slowly got to his feet. “Naruto, what do you want for lunch?” 

Silence answered him. Narumi smiled wryly to himself—of course, Naruto was on his training trip. Even nearly two years after he had left, Narumi still wasn’t used to having the house to himself. “Just one for lunch, then.” 

“Make it two?” 

Narumi looked up, a grin on his face, to see Sakumo standing on the porch. “Sakumo! You got out of the office?” 

“Yep,” Sakumo said, as he slipped off his shoes and stepped inside. He reached into his vest and pulled out a scroll, wiggling it in the air. “I finally got a message from Orochimaru.” 

“Orochimaru sent a message?” Narumi demanded, scrambling towards him. “What does it say?” 

Sakumo handed it over, and Narumi eagerly opened it up and skimmed through it. “He’s joined the Akatsuki! Members work in pairs . . . Kisame Hoshigaki and Deidara . . . Hidan and Kakuzu . . . and then three others, the leaders, who go out in pairs while one remains behind in Ame. Konan, Yahiko, and Nagato.” 

“Names that you might find familiar,” Sakumo said. 

“Jiraiya’s Ame orphans,” Narumi said, nodding. “I remember.” 

“I was surprised to hear they were still alive—Jiraiya had thought they were killed in Ame’s civil war. Not that we really knew much about what happened during the war. We weren’t even sure if it was over or not until Orochimaru sent us this.” Sakumo nodded towards the scroll. “Keep reading.” 

“Orochimaru’s partner is . . . Zetsu. A creature with plant-like features, and a face that is half white and half black,” Narumi read. 

“Minori’s kidnapper, who took him to Madara Uchiha,” Sakumo said grimly. “So this begs the question—what does Madara have to do with the Akatsuki? Are they working together, or are the Akatsuki unaware of Zetsu’s other affiliations? From everything Jiraiya has learned, the Akatsuki profess to be a peace-seeking organization. And now they’re investigating the jinchuuriki and working with Madara’s associates, if not Madara himself.” 

“Has Jiraiya learned anything else?” Narumi asked. 

“Not yet. He’s been trying to stay out of the way of the Akatsuki, since Naruto is with him, and none of his agents have had any luck in getting in contact with the Akatsuki. Orochimaru’s reports may be our best bet of learning more. Hopefully he’ll be able to discover something about Madara’s plans. He’s been interfering with the village from the shadows for too long.” 

They stood in silence for a moment, staring down at Orochimaru’s letter, until Sakumo’s stomach growled loudly. Narumi laughed and handed back the scroll as Sakumo smiled sheepishly. “Okay, okay, I’ll make us some lunch. What are you in the mood for?” 

“Anything sounds good,” he said, following Narumi to the kitchen. “I don’t mind helping.” 

“Uh, let’s see, what do I have . . . rice, of course, lots of pickles, for some reason . . . oh, I bought some fish from the market today, the kind from Uzushio.”

“Oh, that sounds good,” Sakumo said, opening up the fridge and peering inside. “This here?” 

Narumi glanced away from the cabinets. Sakumo held up a package wrapped with brown paper. “Yeah, that’s it.” 

Narumi heaved out the container of pickles, still half-full despite his best efforts. “This stuff is pretty good, too. Chouza Akamichi gave them to me a few months ago and I still haven’t finished them.” 

“Those are Akimichi pickles? I’ll take them if you don’t want them,” Sakumo said, reaching towards the container. 

Narumi pushed it away. “No way. These are my pickles.” 

“C’mon,” Sakumo cajoled, pressing up against Narumi, so close that their noses bumped together. “You love me, right?” 

“Not as much as I love these pickles,” Narumi teased. 

Sakumo leaned forward to press their lips together. Narumi kissed him back enthusiastically, tangling his hands in Sakumo’s hair, until the clink of glass against the counter drew his attention. 

He narrowed his eyes at Sakumo, who grinned unrepentantly and chomped down on a pickle. He groaned and made a face that Narumi usually only saw him make in the bedroom. “I don’t know what he does to these pickles. I devoured all of mine in a week.” 

Sakumo reached behind Narumi again, going for the pickles. Narumi quickly replaced the lid of the jar. “Not so fast. We have to make lunch first.” 

“Let’s just have pickles.” 

“Uh, you’re welcome to try that if you want, but the rest of us mortals can’t subsist on pickles alone.” 

“You can if they’re Akimichi pickles. I don’t know what they do to them, and I’m not sure I want to.” 

“I’m pretty sure they’re just really good pickles.” 

“Normal pickles don’t taste this good. I’d eat them every day if I could,” Sakumo said, entirely serious. 

Narumi laughed. “Okay, okay, you can have as many pickles as you want. Clearly your love for them is stronger than mine. But help me make lunch first.” 

Sakumo grinned and pressed a swift kiss to Narumi’s lips. “You’re going to regret saying that when I leave you with no pickles.” 

Narumi could only smile fondly as Sakumo snatched a pickle out of the jar and gleefully devoured it. “I think I’ll live.” 


	52. Interlude: Year 3, Part 1

This chakra chain thing was harder than the Uzumaki mercenary had made it look. Naruto had thought that it would be easier than working out how to combine the Rasengan with wind chakra, since it was an Uzumaki thing and all, but he’d been working on it all day and he had yet to work out exactly how to manifest the chains. 

“You might not even have the right type of chakra for it,” Jiraiya said. “I’m not a sensor, you know.” 

“I know,” Naruto said through gritted teeth. “But my mom could do it, so it makes sense that I might be able to, right?” 

Jiraiya hummed. Naruto sighed and turned around to find the man crouched on the ground, ignoring Naruto completely. “What are you doing, anyways?” 

“Mail call,” Jiraiya said, holding up a letter. “Something from Inoichi for you.” 

“Oh, cool,” Naruto said, scrambling over to his bag and pulling out a thick packet. “You haven’t sent the mail yet, have you? Send this to him.” 

He threw the letter at Jiraiya, who caught it out of the air and eyed it skeptically. “I should start charging you for this. What are you sending him, novels?” 

“He asked for some edits from the last essay I sent him, and also another essay,” Naruto said. “And then I had some questions for him, and then I kind of got distracted talking about some other stuff . . . oh, did Jiji write back to me?” 

“Tsubame? Yeah, I think I saw his name—yep, here we go.” Jiraiya tossed a scroll over his shoulder. 

Naruto eagerly opened it and whooped in excitement. “Yes! I knew he’d have stuff on the sealing chains. You’re the best, Jiji!” 

He began to pour over the scroll as Jiraiya continued shuffling through the mail. “A few letters from your little friends in Konoha, one from that jinchuuriki kid in Suna . . . boring business letters for me . . . oh-hoh! Love is in the air!" 

Naruto risked a glance over at Jiraiya, who had set the rest of the mail aside in favor of reading one of the letters. "What, did your editor send you your paycheck or something?" 

Jiraiya waved a hand at him. "No, nothing like that, although now that you mention it . . . but no. There's going to be a wedding in Konoha!" 

"A wedding? Whose? Anyone I know?" Naruto demanded. 

"Tsunade's son." 

" _ Nawanuke _ ?" Naruto exclaimed, momentarily bowled over by the idea that anyone might want to marry Nawanuke. 

"No!" Jiraiya scoffed. "Kogane. He's marrying Rin." 

"Oh." Naruto had to admit that that made much more sense. “Wait, Rin’s getting married? We’re going back to Konoha for the wedding, right?” 

Naruto had been to countless weddings for countless Uzumaki relatives when he lived in Uzushio, and they had always been a blast; he wasn’t about to miss his fellow jinchuuriki’s wedding. 

Jiraiya, however, shook his head. “No can do. You and I have business elsewhere.” 

“What? Come on, we can’t even go back for a wedding?” Naruto complained. 

“Not this time,” Jiraiya said. “If they’d gotten married two years ago, then maybe we could’ve finagled it, but the members of Akatsuki have been worryingly active recently. Even just taking a day off would mean losing track of my leads, let alone however long it would take us to get to Konoha and celebrate the wedding.” 

“You won’t let me go back for the jounin exams, you won’t let me go back for a wedding,” Naruto complained. 

“Suck it up, sunshine,” Jiraiya said, as he handed the outgoing mail to a toad and began to put away the rest of the mail. “You can take the jounin exams anytime.” 

“Yeah, but Rin’s only getting married once!” 

“You never know, they might get divorced,” Jiraiya said. 

Naruto scowled and threw a handful of gravel at him. “I’m going back to training.” 

“Do it on the road,” Jiraiya said. “I just got word on Akatsuki—they were spotted around here recently, like I thought.” 

Naruto hastened to shove all his stuff back in his bag. “Really? Which ones?” 

“Not Orochimaru,” Jiraiya said, scowling. “I know that much. Other than that, intel’s vague. There are two of them and they’re wearing the usual cloaks, and that’s all we know. Now, let’s get a move on.” 

Naruto kept practicing with the chakra chains as he followed along behind Jiraiya, occasionally referencing the scroll Tsubame had given him. It would be much easier if Jiraiya let him summon clones to train with, but Jiraiya didn’t want him attracting attention, and apparently a horde of people practicing shinobi moves was a little too conspicuous. Naruto personally thought that Jiraiya was conspicuous anyways, so it couldn’t possibly matter that much if he summoned a couple clones. 

The scroll, thankfully, was actually pretty helpful, and the notes that Tsubame had written on the scroll were even more so. Naruto concentrated on his chakra, willing the chains to manifest. He squinted—was that a glint of blue? It was, he was almost certain, he almost had it—

“Stop.” 

Naruto smacked into Jiraiya’s back, the hint of blue chain vanishing into nothing. “Hey! I almost had it that time, old man!” 

Jiraiya hushed him and knelt down. “See here? There was a fight here recently.” 

Naruto knelt down as well and stared down at the marks on the ground. He wasn’t as good at reading tracks as Jiraiya was—Jiraiya assured him it was a skill that came with experience—but he was pretty sure that they went off the road and into the forest. Sure enough, when he walked over to the forest, he found a few shuriken lodged in the trees. “This way?” 

“Yep,” Jiraiya confirmed, leading the way into the forest. 

Naruto followed after him silently, slipping a kunai into his hand just in case. The forest was eerily silent, as if all the animals had been scared away. It made Naruto nervous to even step on the fallen leaves too loudly, as if that would somehow alert the Akatsuki. They didn’t even know if the Akatsuki were there, but that didn’t stop the nervous sweat from trickling down his neck. 

Jiraiya stopped. “Someone’s here.” 

Naruto stilled. “Akatsuki?” 

“Could be,” Jiraiya said. He motioned ahead of them. “They’re right through there, on the other side of that clearing. I think we can get the drop on them—jump at them in three, two, one—” 

Naruto sprang forwards and smacked right into a wall of sand. He fell to the ground and stared at the wall of sand, mouth open in a surprised expression that shifted to a smile as the wall of sand fell. 

“Gaara! It’s you!” Naruto exclaimed, getting to his feet and throwing himself forward again, this time to give Gaara an enthusiastic hug and a pat on the back. “What are you doing here?” 

Gaara, not seeming to know what to do while being hugged, awkwardly patted Naruto’s shoulder. “Naruto. I had not expected to find you here.” 

“So, not the Akatsuki after all,” Jiraiya sighed, stepping out from the trees. “Yashamaru, Sasori, always a pleasure.” 

One of the men standing behind Gaara gave Jiraiya a terse smile. “Jiraiya of the Sannin.” 

Naruto stepped back from Gaara and gave Kankuro and Temari a cheerful wave. He never really talked to them, but they were Gaara’s siblings so they were practically Naruto’s friends already. “Hey, guys!” 

Sasori had already abandoned the conversation in favor of checking the clearing. “They fought here,” he noted. “Yashamaru—”

Yashamaru nodded and stepped forwards to examine the clearing as well. 

“Are you guys tracking the Akatsuki too?” Naruto asked. 

Gaara nodded. “Yes. They have been seen in the vicinity of Sunagakure. We are attempting to build a profile of their behavior to predict what they intend to do.” 

Kankuro eyed Naruto warily. “Uh, should we be talking to the guys from Konoha about our top-secret mission?” 

“It’s okay,” Naruto said. “Our mission is top-secret too!” 

“That’s . . . not how it works,” Temari said, before sighing and shaking her head. “Whatever. Gaara will do whatever he wants to do.” 

“We’ve been following those Akatsuki guys all over the place. Or they’ve been following us. It’s not really clear,” Naruto said. “But we’ve been to a lot of the same places they’ve been, so maybe we can do an exchange of information, or something.” 

Jiraiya smacked him upside the head. “Hey. Don’t go offering information to other villages without clearing it with me first.” 

“But it’s Gaara!” Naruto complained. “C’mon, Jiraiya, don’t you think he should know what they’re up to? Because, you know.” 

Jiraiya rubbed a hand over his chin. “You have a point,” he said, with a reluctant sigh. “Fine. But only the movements of the Akatsuki. Nothing else. I’m going to take a look around—don’t go anywhere.” 

Gaara nodded. “I accept your offer of an information exchange.” 

Neither Kankuro nor Temari looked particularly comfortable with this agreement, but they didn’t raise any protests, either, so Naruto grinned and slung an arm around Gaara’s shoulder. “Great! C’mon, we can have lunch and talk about the boring stuff, and then we can talk about the fun stuff!” 

He regaled them with his knowledge of the Akatsuki’s movements over a meal of riceballs, and then Gaara filled him in on what Akatsuki had been doing around Suna. 

“But why are you tracking Akatsuki?” Temari asked. “I mean, I know why we are; the Kazekage is paranoid about any group that gets too close to Suna for his comfort. But they’re just one of those weird peace-seeking organizations. I mean, occasionally they take mercenary jobs for the cash, but that’s just about the most violent thing they do as far as we can tell.” 

“Don’tcha know?” Naruto said around a mouthful of ricel. “They’re hunting the Jinchuuriki. They’re probably close to Suna to get more information on Gaara.” He looked around, making sure the adults were far enough away that they wouldn’t overhear, and then lowered his voice. “That’s why I’ve been travelling. I’m doing a bunch of jinchuuriki training with Jiraiya.” 

“They’re what?” Temari hissed. “Are you sure we aren’t talking about two different groups?” 

“Based in Ame, wears black cloaks with red clouds?” Naruto said. Reluctantly, Temari nodded. “I ran into them a couple of years ago and they said they were looking for jinchuuriki.” 

“Shit,” Temari hissed. “I guess it wasn’t paranoia this time.” 

She frowned pensively into the distance, clearly deep in thought. Naruto nudged Gaara. “Hey, d’you do any jinchuuriki training?” 

Gaara shook his head. “I do not speak with Shukaku often. When I do, he usually tries to goad me into acts of violence.” 

“Huh. Yeah, the Kyuubi can be pretty grumpy, usually he wants me to use too much of his chakra so I go on a rampage or something—wait, Shukaku?” 

Gaara nodded. “Yes, the Ichibi. His name is Shukaku.” 

“They have names?” Naruto demanded. Gaara nodded again. “The Kyuubi never told me! That bastard, I’m gonna ask his name the next time I talk to him! I wonder if Rin knows?” 

“Rin?” Gaara asked. 

“Oh, she’s my friend from Konoha,” Naruto said. “She’s a jinchuuriki, too. You guys should meet! She knows a bunch about being a jinchuuriki. The Sanbi is actually pretty nice, I guess, so they get along well. She’s getting married soon, but Jiraiya says we can’t go back to Konoha for the wedding. She’s marrying my friend Heiwa’s brother, Kogane.” 

Gaara nodded. “Yes, Nawanuke Senju’s siblings. I remember. How is Nawanuke?” 

“Nawanuke? Uh, he’s fine, I guess,” Naruto said. “I dunno, I don’t really talk to him. Why d’you wanna know? Oh, yeah, you guys fought in the exams, didn’t you? I didn’t know you became friends! That’s pretty cool. But if you want to know how he’s doing, you should probably write him a letter. I always like getting letters from my friends.” 

Gaara didn’t have a chance to respond before Yashamaru sharply called out, “Gaara! Temari, Kankuro, we’re leaving.” 

Gaara stood and gave Naruto a nod. “It was good to see you again. I will await your next letter.” 

Naruto, beaming, thumped him on the back. “Yeah, sure thing. I’ll send you some jinchuuriki training tips, stuff that worked with the Kyuubi. Don’t get abducted by the Akatsuki.” 

“You as well,” Gaara said, and then he and his team ran into the forest, leaving Jiraiya and Naruto behind. 

Jiraiya sighed. “Well, Akatsuki’s long gone from this area. They were hunting a bounty—the Suna team tracked them backwards from the bounty office.” 

“Are we gonna go check out what they’re doing near Suna?” 

Jiraiya shook his head. “I don’t want us drawing the Kazekage’s attention. I need to think—do some training, or something.” 

Naruto considered going back to his chakra chains, but he had to admit he was curious about what Gaara had said, so he settled down in the middle of the clearing and began to meditate, letting himself sink down into the sewer that housed the Kyuubi. 

“Hey! Hey, furball!” he called. 

The Kyuubi groaned. “You again. You aren’t fighting anyone—what do you want this time?” 

“What’s your name?” 

“I’m the Kyuubi.” 

“Yeah, I know that,” Naruto said, rolling his eyes. “I mean your name. And I know you have one. The Ichibi’s name is Shukaku, Gaara told me so.” 

The Kyuubi’s tails thrashed. “That idiot never could keep his mouth shut.” 

“So?” Naruto asked. “What’s your name?” 

“Like I’d tell you, you loud-mouthed idiot!” the Kyuubi snarled. 

Naruto crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the Kyuubi. “C’mon, you know my name. And we’re partners, right?” 

“Partners? As if. As soon as I’m free of you, I’m eating you for breakfast!” 

“Yeah, yeah, that’s what you always say,” Naruto said. “I guess that means Gaara and Shukaku are gonna be better at fighting together than you and me.” 

“I know what you’re doing,” the Kyuubi said. “You aren’t going to trick me into giving you my name.” 

“Worth a shot,” Naruto declared, grinning unrepentantly. “You’ll give it to me sooner or later. Jiraiya says I have a talent for annoying persistence. And unlike Jiraiya, you can’t get away from me. We’re gonna be the best jinchuuriki partners, just you wait.” 

The Kyuubi made a snorting noise and turned his back to Naruto, but he didn’t try to attack him in the bars or threaten to kill him or his friends, so—well, progress was progress, right? 

***

Sakura was in the middle of putting the finishing touches on a seal when a knock on the door resounded through the room. She looked up, only a little surprised to be interrupted when she hadn’t been there for very long—chances were, someone needed her help with a patient. 

Instead of a nurse or a medic, however, Su stood in the doorway. As soon as they were certain they had her attention, their hands flashed through a series of signs. 

“ _ Get your gear. Shishou says we’re moving out.”  _

Sakura nodded and quickly grabbed her sword. “Did he say why?” 

“ _ An emergency with the Kiri rebels. Kiri is sending troops their way, possibly more than they can handle.”  _

Sakura quickened her pace to walk beside Su as they left the closet she called an office. The hospital was located in the middle of the village, near the administration building, but the walk to the edge of the village was short. Tsubame stood on a beach, gazing pensively towards the island currently hosting the Kiri rebels. He nodded sharply as they approached. 

“Good, you’re here. We’re setting out.” 

Sakura’s water-walking abilities had improved immensely since she’d started living in Uzushio; most shinobi just used the canals as streets half the time, and the easiest way to get anywhere from Uzushio was to run across the water. Tsubame and Su could both do something where they used the waves to boost their speed even more, and she hadn’t quite figured that one out yet, but she managed to keep up with them all the way to the island. 

The Kiri rebels usually kept out of sight, but two figures were visible on the beach as they approached. It was easy to tell who they were long before they reached the beach; with that sword, it could only be Zabuza, the rebel leader’s right-hand man, and his apprentice Haku. 

Haku gave them a polite nod as they landed on the beach, while Zabuza slung his sword over his shoulder and stared them down. “Password?” 

“The password is stop irritating me and take me to Terumi,” Tsubame snapped, not even pausing as he marched off the beach. Zabuza chuckled—even his laughter made Sakura shudder—and stepped out in front of them, leading the way. “What’s the emergency?” 

“Kiri seems to have realized that your base is located here,” Tsubame said. “They’re sending at least fifty shinobi here.” 

“Only fifty?” Zabuza asked. 

“Fifty jounin.” 

“Hah. Yagura really is insane, if he thinks that’s all it will take.” 

“The size of your ego is impressive.” 

“Careful, you might make me think you’ve been looking,  _ Uzukage-sama _ .” 

“At you? I’d sooner look at a shark.” 

“I can make that happen. I bet there’s a Hoshigaki somewhere in the group they’re sending after us. I’ll save him just for you.” 

“How kind.” 

Sakura suppressed a sigh as the two continued to bicker. For a jounin and a kage, they certainly could be childish sometimes. “How have you been, Haku?” 

Haku gave her a polite smile. “I’ve been well, thank you. Ah—your friend, I don’t believe we’ve met?” 

“Oh, that’s right,” Sakura said, looking at Su. “You’ve always been busy when Haku and Zabuza came to talk to Shishou. Haku, this is Su. They’re Tsubame-shishou’s successor as Uzukage. Su, this is Haku, Zabuza’s apprentice. He’s probably the nicest Kiri shinobi you’ll ever meet.” 

Haku laughed softly. “Oh, not at all.” 

Ahead of them, Mei Terumi had emerged from the rebel encampment and was deep in discussion with Tsubame; Zabuza had abandoned the conversation and was heading back towards them. 

“Haku. We’re going back to the beach.” 

Su nodded at Sakura and made a few quick signs. “ _ We should go to the beach as well.”  _

Sakura cast one last glance at Mei Terumi—one of these days, she was going to manage to have a conversation with her—before following Su back to the beach. Zabuza was already waiting for the Kiri shinobi to appear, staring out over the ocean. 

Mist crept up from the sea. 

Footsteps crunched across the sand; Sakura turned to find Tsubame approaching them. On the other side of the beach, Terumi was organizing the rebels. 

“Be ready,” Tsubame said. “They’re coming.” 

The mist rose unnaturally quickly, and all too soon Sakura couldn’t even see Tsubame standing next to her. She breathed out slowly and wrapped her fingers around the sword at her waist. She’d practiced enough with it now that drawing it only took one smooth motion. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tsubame surge forwards, vanishing into the mist. An instant later, a dark shape lunged at her, and she swiftly brought up her sword to defend herself. Her sword clashed against the Kiri shinobi’s. In the distance, weapons crashed together and the occasional fire or lightning jutsu lit up the fog. 

The fight was on. 

The shinobi fighting her wasn’t as good as Tsubame—already, she could see an opening in his attack, as he slashed his sword towards her. She jumped back, out of range of the sweep of his blade, and then before he could attack again lunged forward, angling her sword just so. The tip of her blade pierced his throat right where there was a gap in the armored vest he was wearing. Blood spurted from the wound as she yanked her sword out again; he made a horrible gurgling noise before sinking to the ground. 

Sakura quickly turned away, seeking out someone else to fight. She didn’t have to wait long; a whip of water very nearly hit her, had she not thrown herself to the ground in time to avoid it. The woman at the other end of the attack smirked at her before starting another series of hand seals. Sakura took a deep breath and ran forwards. 

No time to stop. No time to take a break. 

Sometimes, someone appeared out of the mist to fight alongside her. Su, once, came to warn her away from the part of the beach where Mei Terumi was annihilating anyone Kiri threw at her. Haku’s ice mirrors trapped two shinobi who were attacking her. Once, she actually caught a swordsman Zabuza was fighting in a genjutsu, giving Zabuza an opening to slice his head clean off his shoulders. She’d never been so grateful for her short hair—even with the cool mist, she could feel sweat dripping down her neck. 

She couldn’t see more than his silhouette given the mist, but she could hear Zabuza’s irritated grunt. “I can’t see for shit. We’ve got to find who’s making this mist.” 

“If someone could—keep them off of me for a moment—” Tsubame called from somewhere beyond Zabuza. 

“Yeah, yeah, hold your seahorses,” Zabuza said, before even his silhouette vanished from Sakura’s view. Sakura, after a moment, decided to hurry after him. She’d been able to assist him once before, so maybe she would be able to again. 

She arrived to find that Tsubame, Zabuza, and Haku had already made short work of whoever had been attacking Tsubame. The tell-tale shards of ice imbedded in some of them clearly showed Haku’s handiwork. Sakura was half tempted to take a piece of ice and put it down her shirt to cool herself down. 

As she approached, Tsubame shut his eyes and just stood there for a moment. 

“Above,” he murmured, after a few moments. He slid his thumb down the blade of his sword and slammed it against the ground. The puff of smoke that resulted was even harder to see through than the mist, but it cleared quickly, revealing a giant bird—a swallow, she thought—large enough for Tsubame to stand on its back. The bird flapped its wings and took off into the sky, bearing Tsubame. 

The rush of wind cleared the fog around them for just a moment. Sakura’s eyes locked with the eyes of a woman from Kiri for an instant before the fog swallowed them up again. Sakura lunged forward, throwing herself to the ground as a whip snapped through the air. She rolled back to her feet and kept running, until the woman’s silhouette was visible through the fog. 

Sakura’s sword slashed forward, connecting with the woman’s side. The woman burst, water spraying over Sakura—a water clone. 

On reflex, Sakura dodged to the side, avoiding the whip once again. 

“You can’t hide forever!” the woman yelled. 

“Neither can you,” Sakura muttered under her breath, as she formed a series of seals. A simple sound-based genjutsu, one that made it sound like she was moving away from where she really was. Sure enough, the whip snapped through the air several feet to Sakura’s right. Sakura crept forward, keeping her footsteps silent with the same genjutsu, in the direction the whip had come from. 

Then, as quickly as it had come, the fog vanished. 

Sakura lunged forward, sword ready.

The woman turned to face her, eyes widening, and desperately struck out with the whip. Sakura stepped out of the way just enough to avoid the attack, slicing upwards with the sword. The sword dragged across the woman’s chest and over her throat. She stumbled back, clasped a hand to her throat, and fell down. 

A quiet gasp drew her attention. 

Sakura turned around and nearly dropped her sword. 

The woman’s final, desperate attack had missed Sakura, but it had not missed entirely. Su was crouched on the beach, Haku supported in his arms, as if Su had only just managed to catch him before he hit the ground. Both of them were covered in blood, and Haku was unnaturally pale. 

Haku’s leg, severed just above the knee, lay on the ground. 

Sakura ran across the beach and fell to her knees, skidding to a stop at Haku’s side. Without even thinking about it, she yanked off her shirt, ripping a long strip from the fabric and tying it as tightly as she could around his thigh—it would work as a tourniquet for now, until she finished the necessary seals. The rest of the shirt she put under the stump of his leg, a protective barrier from the sand. 

“Put a barrier around us,” she instructed Su. “I’ll take care of Haku.” 

Su didn’t have much talent with medical jutsu, but they were extremely skilled at barriers. A wall of purple light rose around them moments later. Su would defend them from the outside, but Sakura still needed to act quickly. 

“Sorry, Haku,” Sakura murmured as she pulled out her sealing supplies. “But I don’t have any anesthesia for you. Hang in there.” 

First: clean the wounds. There was no telling what debris had gotten in there, when they were on a beach. The seal to sterilize wounds was probably the one she used the most, and Sakura always kept a few on hand, so that only took a few moments. 

That was the easy part. 

The hard part was making the next seal work, when she had never attempted anything on this scale before. Carefully, she lined up Haku’s severed leg with the stump of his thigh, using the bandages in her medical kit to wrap it up and keep it from moving. 

“Okay,” Sakura said, dipping her brush in ink. “Don’t hate me if this doesn’t work.” 

With a deep breath, Sakura began to work. She drew the seal as quickly as she dared, writing out the formulas that she had refined over and over again in theory but had never had a chance to attempt in practice. 

Sakura really, really hoped that it worked. 

By the time she finally finished the seal, her hand had cramped so badly she wasn’t sure if she was capable of letting go of the brush anymore, and her eyes ached from squinting down at the miniscule components of the seal. She set down the brush, taking a moment to stretch out her fingers, and placed her hands against the seal. 

“Here goes.” 

The seal lit up as she channeled chakra through it, hopefully knitting Haku’s leg back together. It took more chakra than she had expected—by the time the seal dimmed, she felt drained and exhausted. She sat back on her heels and wiped the sweat from her face. Haku had yet to stir, but at least he hadn’t gotten visibly worse. She had no way of telling how the wound had healed with the bandage still wrapped around his leg, however, so she tentatively began to unravel it. 

The final layer of bandage peeled away to reveal a pink line around his leg, and a quick examination of the wound showed nothing wrong. With a sigh of relief, Sakura stood and looked for Su. 

Su hadn’t gone far—they stood just outside the barrier, keeping a careful eye on the battles going on elsewhere along the beach. There weren’t that many—Zabuza was fighting the only one that remained near them, and Terumi’s rebels were making quick work of the rest of them. 

“Su,” Sakura called. “Haku needs to be taken to the hospital. He lost a lot of blood.” 

Su brought down the barrier and knelt down at Haku’s side, easily lifting Haku into their arms. Su gave Sakura a final, resolute nod before taking off across the waves, quickly vanishing over the horizon. Sakura stretched out her limbs, stiff from kneeling at Haku’s side, and shook the sand off her ripped and bloody shirt. 

Zabuza’s sword swept through the air, slicing straight through his opponent, and then their side of the beach was still. Sakura peered into the air—the fog had vanished, but Tsubame’s sparrow was still circling around a giant seagull. 

“Haku!” Zabuza called. “Tell Terumi we’re done here.” 

“Um,” Sakura said. “I had Su take Haku to the hospital in Uzushio—his leg was sliced off.” 

Zabuza jerked around to face her, the full weight of his killing intent landing on her. Sakura squeaked. “I—I reattached his leg,” she said quickly. “He should be fine, but he lost a lot of blood so I thought the hospital would be best.” 

After a moment, Zabuza nodded, and the killing intent lessened. “That’s right. You’re that Uzukage’s apprentice. Go tell Terumi that we’re done here.” 

Sakura nodded quickly and darted off across the sand. Terumi and the rebels had finished their fight as well, and had started the search for survivors to interrogate. None of them were seriously injured, so Terumi, probably recognizing Sakura’s exhaustion, dismissed her back to Tsubame. 

Now that the fight was over, exhaustion dragged at her limbs. Sakura wanted nothing more than to collapse onto the ground and not get up for a few hours. When she reached the side of the beach where they had been fighting, however, Tsubame still wasn’t there, and Zabuza was staring up at the sky. 

“What the hell is that Uzukage doing?” he muttered. 

Zabuza wasn’t paying any attention to her, and there wasn’t much she could do about a battle in the sky, so Sakura took the opportunity to wade in the shallows and rinse off the grime of battle. The water was warm, but still a welcome relief. 

“Shit!” 

Sakura’s head snapped back towards the beach, her hand automatically flying to her weapons pouch. Zabuza was charging along the beach, but she couldn’t see why—until she looked up. 

The giant seagull had vanished, as had Tsubame’s swallow. Tsubame was in free-fall, so high up that his long, red hair was the only way she could tell who it was. Dozens of seals passed through her mind, none of them useful. Zabuza was running towards Tsubame, but she wasn’t sure what good that would do—even if he reached Tsubame in time, what could he do? 

Tsubame yelled something, still too far away for her to hear, and wind rushed over the beach. Sakura turned her head away and brought a hand up to protect her face as biting grains of sand flew through the air, only daring to look at the beach again when the wind had faded. 

Zabuza had, in the end, reached Tsubame in time, and had even managed to catch Tsubame in his arms. Tsubame had a few small injuries but didn’t seem to be as injured as she had feared when she had seen him falling. 

“Shishou!” Sakura exclaimed, out of sheer relief. 

Tsubame straightened his clothes and glared at Zabuza. “You’re lucky I used that jutsu to break my fall, or you would have broken all the bones in your body catching me like that. Now put me down.” 

Zabuza unceremoniously dropped Tsubame, who landed in a crouch and gracefully stood. He examined the beach for a few moments, and then nodded in satisfaction. “You made quick work of them.” His eyes moved to the sword slung across Zabuza’s back. “So, that’s Kubikiribocho. May I . . . ?” 

“I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” Zabuza said. 

Tsubame removed his sword, sheath and all, and held it between himself and Zabuza. Zabuza reached out, his hand closing around the hilt of the sword, but Tsubame didn’t let go. “Treat it carefully,” Tsubame said, so quietly Sakura almost couldn’t hear him. “This sword is more precious than all of the swords belonging to the Seven Swordsmen.” 

“What do you take me for?” Zabuza snorted. 

Tsubame’s hand dropped from the sword. Zabuza drew it from the sheath and examined the blade. After a few moments, he made a few experimental strikes, stabbing and sweeping the blade through the air. When he was satisfied, he replaced the sheath and handed it back to Tsubame. As Tsubame strapped it to his waist again, Zabuza pulled out Kubikiribocho. 

“Ah,” Tsubame said, as he accepted the blade. “It’s lighter than I expected.” 

“Not surprised, with that thing you lug around,” Zabuza said. “What the hell is it made of?” 

“I don’t know,” Tsubame said. He ran a finger along the blade, watching as the metal absorbed his blood, and then handed it back. “Sakura, where is Su?” 

“Ah!” Sakura jumped back to attention. “He took Haku to the hospital. Haku was injured—I managed to reattach his leg, but I thought he should still get checked out.” 

Tsubame nodded. “A wise decision. We should return to Uzushio—I’ve been gone too long already.” 

To Sakura’s surprise, as they left the beach, Zabuza joined them. He looked down at her, and Sakura quickly looked away. If Zabuza decided he wanted to go to Uzushio with them, Sakura wasn’t going to be the one to question him. 

Zabuza ended up accompanying them almost all the way to the hospital, until the point where the canal they were talking along split and headed to the hospital in one direction, and the Uzumaki compound in the other. Tsubame stopped there. “You should continue on to the Uzumaki compound,” he said. 

“I’m going to the hospital,” Zabuza said. 

“You are not,” Tsubame said. 

“Why?” 

“Because you scare the children,” Tsubame said firmly. 

Zabuza stared him down. “And who’s going to make me?” 

“I will,” Tsubame said. 

Sakura hoped that they didn’t start brawling in the middle of the street. Thankfully, Zabuza backed down. “You realize I don’t know the way to the compound.” 

Tsubame sighed. “Very well. I will take you. Sakura, check on Su and Haku. If Haku is well, inform him that he is invited to the Uzumaki compound for dinner.” 

“A personal escort from the Uzukage? Now I know I’m important.” 

“I wouldn’t want to subject Sakura to an extended period of time in your presence.” 

Sakura headed towards the hospital, leaving them bickering behind her. The nurse manning the desk updated her on Haku’s situation. Thankfully, Haku seemed to be fine—they had examined his leg and declared it perfectly healed, apart from the scarring. 

She paused outside the door, hearing a laugh from inside. “Yes, we have found ourselves in some interesting situations. Ah—sorry, I don’t know that one. We don’t use that one in Kiri. Oh! Yes, that one I know,” Haku said, laughing. 

Sakura knocked on the door and peeked inside. Su turned their head towards her, still signing with their hands. Haku didn’t look away from Su’s hands until they stilled, and then looked up at Sakura with a smile. 

“The nurses told me you can be discharged,” Sakura said. “Shishou’s invited you over to the Uzumaki compound for dinner.” 

Haku glanced over at Su, before shaking his head regretfully. “I shouldn’t. I must return to Zabuza.” 

“He’s already there,” Sakura said. “He and Shishou went on ahead.” 

“He did?” Haku said. Again, his eyes slid towards Su, before he gave Sakura a small smile. “Then I suppose I have no choice but to accept. Who do I speak with to be discharged?” 

Sakura took care of the discharge papers, leaving Haku in the care of Su. It took longer than she would have liked, nearly an hour in the end, but she supposed that meant dinner would hopefully be ready for them by the time they arrived. She didn’t know about Su and Haku, but she could eat a horse. 

Su and Haku went to the washroom to clean themselves up once they arrived, while Sakura went to check on the dinner proceedings. To her surprise, Zabuza was sitting in the dining room on his own, while a few maids eyed him nervously. 

“You,” he said, spotting her. “Where’s Haku?” 

“I’m right here,” Haku said, giving Sakura a polite nod as he entered the room. 

Zabuza’s eyes roved up and down his body, checking him for injuries. “I see you’re in one piece.” 

Haku gave him a small smile. “Thanks to Sakura.” 

Sakura left them in the dining room and went to the kitchen. Dinner seemed to be mostly prepared, with the cook’s assistants putting the finishing touches on the first dish. Tsubame wasn’t there either, so Sakura quickly got the attention of a passing maid. “Where’s Shishou?” 

“Ah, I’m not sure,” the maid said. “Tsubame-sama brought his guest to the living room, and then left . . . I haven’t seen him since. I’ve been too busy preparing dinner to look. We weren’t expecting guests today.” 

“I’ll go find him,” Sakura said. 

Su had joined the other two at the table, and was engaging in an animated discussion with Haku—Sakura had never seen their hands move so quickly. Relieved that someone was taking care of the guests, Sakura hurried over to the bedrooms to seek out Tsubame. 

She found him in the first place she had expected: his bedroom. However, rather than washing up or taking a brief nap, she found him staring down at two different kimono, with a hakama already set to the side. One kimono was navy blue, and the other a brighter blue, but other than that there seemed to be no difference between them. 

Sakura tentatively knocked on the door. “Shishou . . . ?” 

“Ah. Sakura,” he said. “What is it?” 

“Dinner’s almost ready,” Sakura said. 

“Of course. I will be there momentarily,” he said. 

Sakura left him to it, taking a moment to freshen up in her room before returning to the kitchen to update the maids. “Shishou said he would be ready soon. Is there anything I can do to help?” 

“Of course. Help plate the pickles, if you would.” 

Sakura assisted in the kitchen, occasionally checking the dining room to see if Tsubame had joined them. Half an hour later, he still had yet to appear. With a sigh, Sakura untied her borrowed apron. “I’m going to go check on him.” 

He was right where she had left him, staring down at the two kimono. 

“Is everything okay, Shishou?” she said. 

“Of course it is,” he said, before sighing. “No. No, it is not.” 

Sakura looked over at the kimono. “Are you . . . trying to pick which kimono to wear?”

“Of course not,” he snapped. “Why would I do that?” 

Sakura had to admit she had no idea why he would do that. She turned over the thought in her mind, along with the events of the day. Normally Shishou didn’t seem to care about what he wore beyond that he looked presentable, even when they had guests—so what was different about these guests?

Sakura gasped. “Shishou, do you have a crush on Zabuza?” 

“Of course not,” Tsubame said. “That would be ridiculous. I’m too old for such things.” 

“You’re never too old for love, Shishou!” Sakura exclaimed. “I’ll help you decide.” 

“Really, that’s not necessary.” 

Sakura ignored him in favor of giving the two kimono her full attention. “I think you should wear the bright one,” she said. “The dark one makes you look too severe.” 

“Of course,” Tsubame said, nodding in understanding for a moment before hesitating. “But what if he likes severe?” 

“Go with the bright one,” Sakura said firmly. “The dark one makes you look washed out.” 

“Ah. The bright one it is, then,” Tsubame said. A soft, amused huff of laughter escaped him. “I must admit, it has been many years since I felt the desire to dress up in such a manner. I believe I can handle things from here.” 

Sakura gave him a thumbs up. “You’ve got this, Shishou! Go get ‘im!” 

She quickly made her way back to the dining room. Su, thankfully, was still entertaining Haku and Zabuza—or, they were entertaining Haku, at least. Zabuza was just sitting there. Either way, Sakura owed Su a big thank you once this was over. 

“Shishou should be here soon, for real this time,” she assured the maids.

The maids and cooks quickly began the final preparations for the first course, while Sakura returned to the dining room. Usually, since it was just the three of them, Sakura and Su sat across from each other while Tsubame sat at the head of the table. Zabuza had taken the foot of the table, however, and Haku and Su had taken seats across from each other on either side of Zabuza. Sakura took a seat next to Su, and hoped that Tsubame really did show up soon. 

When he did, she nearly gasped in surprise. 

Tsubame had always been beautiful, with his strikingly red hair and blue eyes. However, he had left his hair mostly down tonight, and its length alone made Sakura speechless. The kimono brought out his eyes perfectly, and matched the earrings he’d put in as well. Sakura hadn’t even known that Shishou wore earrings, much less dangly blue ones. 

Sakura wished that half of Zabuza’s face wasn’t covered—she bet that even his jaw would have dropped. 

The moment Tsubame was seated, the maids brought in dinner. It looked amazing, as always; Sakura was half tempted to steal Tsubame’s chef for herself when she finally returned to Konoha. She tried very hard not to stare as Zabuza finally unraveled the bandages around the lower half of his face, only daring to take a peek once they were a few minutes into the first course. 

He was disappointingly normal. But Tsubame kept blushing whenever he looked up and caught sight of Zabuza sitting across from him, so Sakura supposed that made up for it. 

Su surreptitiously signed at her under the table. “ _ Do you think Shishou is acting weird?”  _

“ _ He—”  _ Sakura hesitated for a moment; there wasn’t really a euphemistic way to say what she wanted to say in the Uzushio sign language. Her options were extremely blunt, or extremely blunt. “ _ He wants to fuck Zabuza.”  _

Su spewed tea across the table. 

Even with their hair covering their face, Sakura could tell Su looked absolutely mortified. A maid tried to mop up the tea as unobtrusively as possible. Zabuza was not making it easy on her. 

“No signing under the table, please,” Tsubame sighed. “We have guests.” 

“Sorry, Shishou,” Sakura said sheepishly. Su signed a quick apology as well, specifically at Haku. 

After a moment, Haku smiled. “I assure you, you have nothing to apologize for. It didn’t get on me at all.” 

Tsubasa raised an eyebrow. “I’m surprised you understand Uzushio sign language.” 

“It is quite similar to the one used by the Kiri Hunter-nin, which I am familiar with,” Haku said. “Although I must confess, there are many signs that I do not understand.” 

“You understand quite well, for someone unfamiliar with it,” Tsubame said, while Haku demurred. 

Somehow, dinner passed normally from there on out, apart from how Tsubame looked across the table at Zabuza perhaps a little more frequently than was normal—although, to be fair, Sakura was pretty sure she caught Zabuza looking at Tsubame more than once. The maids brought in course after course, each one more delicious than the last. By the time dessert passed, Sakura was well and truly stuffed, and more than ready to call it a night. 

Tsubame, of course, chose that moment to break out his best bottle of sake. Zabuza, who seemed like he had been about to get up to leave, settled back down. 

“I think I’m going to head to bed,” said Sakura, who had absolutely no desire to watch her teacher get tipsy and flirt with Zabuza. 

Su nodded, and then looked at Haku. “ _ Are you tired? You can sleep in my room. I have a spare futon.”  _

Sakura had to admire their boldness; they didn’t even blush. Haku did, however, and quite prettily. Sakura wanted to steal his cheekbones. 

Haku glanced over at Zabuza, who waved a hand dismissively, before looking back at Su. “If you’re certain you don’t mind.” 

“ _ Of course not,”  _ Su signed. 

After the events of the day, Sakura was ready to collapse into bed. She put a minimal amount of effort into cleaning herself up before dropping onto her futon, kindly set out for her by the maids. Almost immediately, however, she realized that she had a problem. 

She really, really needed a glass of water. 

She had to return to the kitchen. 

Sakura crept through the hallways, not wanting to wake up Haku and Su, and made her way back to the dining room. Zabuza and Tsubame were still there, but Tsubame had moved to sit next to Zabuza, possibly so that the sake would be easier to pour but most likely so that he could flirt more easily. Sakura very studiously avoided looking at them as she crossed the dining room. Neither of them seemed to notice her presence. 

Despite the late hour, the kitchen was bustling as the staff cleaned up after dinner. Sakura got her cup of water and got out of their way, sticking close to the doorway. She could hear Zabuza and Tsubame talking, but tried her best to avoid listening in. As soon as she was finished with her water, she made a hasty escape from the kitchen, crossing the dining room in record time. 

“Why don’t we cut the bullshit?” Zabuza said, before she could shut the door. 

“I thought you would never ask.” 

Sakura jumped away from the door and scurried back to her room, shutting the door so quickly she nearly slammed it. She stepped towards her bed, paused, and took a moment to place a few soundproofing seals around the room. 

Tsubame’s room was right next to hers—she had a feeling she was going to need them. 

***

When Sakura got up for breakfast the next morning, Tsubame was already awake, and halfway through his meal. “Did Zabuza and Haku leave already?” she asked. 

“Zabuza left, but I believe Su took Haku on a tour of the village,” Tsubame said. 

“But I already gave Haku a tour ages ago,” Sakura said. 

Tsubame gave her an amused look. “Su doesn’t know that, however, and Haku made no attempt to correct them. You performed well on the beach yesterday—I have something new planned for you today.” 

Sakura grinned; Tsubame was often too busy to train with her for very long, so she treasured every moment that she did get. “What is it? More sword training?” 

“You’ll find out once you finish your breakfast,” Tsubame said. 

Sakura quickly returned to her breakfast, and managed to finish at the same time Tsubame did. After grabbing her equipment and dressing in clothes suitable for training, she joined him in walking to the area they usually used for their training, one of the many small islands dotted around the main village. 

Her eyes landed on his sword. “Oh—Shishou, I was wondering, what’s special about your sword? You told Zabuza to take care of it. Is it a chakra blade? Or does it have a special ability, like Kubikiribocho?” 

“It does not,” he said. “Although—it might, I suppose. I must confess, I have no idea what it is made of, and it is unusually heavy for a sword of its size. This sword is precious for another reason. The sword I gave you was once mine; I used it until I was a few years older than you.” 

Sakura supposed that explained the blue decorations; Tsubame’s favorite color was extremely obvious. 

“And the one that you use now?” Sakura asked, as they reached the center of the island. 

“The one that I use belonged to my sister,” Tsubame said. “It was one of a few things she left me—the sword, the hat, and this.” 

He pulled out two scrolls, one in each hand. Sakura’s eyes widened as she recognized them. “Summoning scrolls.” 

“Indeed,” Tsubame said. “My sister had a summoning contract with the otters, as I have one with swallows. You may sign either of them. Don’t worry about the otter scroll going unused—Su has already signed it.” 

Sakura looked between them, turning over the benefits of each. Otters were extremely smart, and adorable, but she wasn’t sure how useful they would be once she returned to Konoha and wasn’t around so much water. Swallows, however, seemed like they would be incredibly useful. Tsubame used them for transportation, communication, and battle, and they would be useful almost everywhere. 

“The swallows,” she said. 

“An excellent choice,” Tsubame said, replacing one scroll and handing the other to her. Sakura sliced her thumb open with a kunai, and then signed her name underneath her bloody fingerprints. 

“And there you have it,” Tsubame said, as he rolled up the scroll and put it away again. “Our training for the day: learning how to summon.” 

Sakura, grinning from ear to ear, formed a seal with her hands and prepared to make her first attempt at summoning. 

She couldn’t wait to tell her friends about this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two more chapters, and then we're in Shippuden territory. Thanks for reading!


	53. Interlude: Year 3, Part 2

The Capital was  _ hot  _ in the summer. Almost ten years living there, and still Kintsugi wasn’t used to it. He wasn’t finished with his popsicle yet, but he was tempted to go back into the convenience store and buy another just to get a blast of the air conditioning. He was sweating buckets, even wearing shorts and a tank top. 

Minori, beside him, had gone a step further and chosen to wear a sundress and a big, floppy hat with a plastic flower on the brim. He said that the hat was because he didn’t freckle or tan, just burn, but Kintsugi figured he couldn’t be too concerned about that, because his legs were carelessly stretched out in front of him. The heat didn’t seem to be bothering him too much; he looked . . . refreshing, or something. 

Kintsugi took a bite of his popsicle and glared at the convenience store across the street—they’d been sitting by the doors before, but the owner had shooed them away for loitering. “It’s too damn hot.” 

A sudden breeze blew past him; he looked to the side, surprised, only to see Minori making a seal with his hands and blowing the gust of wind out of his mouth. 

“Thanks,” Kintsugi said, when the breeze stopped. “That shinobi stuff is pretty useful, huh?” 

“I never thought I’d use it for air conditioning,” Minori laughed. The last bite of his popsicle dropped off the stick and hit the ground, and Minori looked down, surprised. “Ah!” 

Kintsugi got to his feet. “I’ll grab another. Same flavor?” 

“Same flavor,” Minori said cheerfully. 

Kintsugi bought four popsicles, this time, two red ones for Minori and two blue ones for himself, and then returned to the heat. He dropped one of the popsicles into Minori’s hands, and pressed the other one to the back of Minori’s neck. 

Minori shrieked. “Kintsugi! That’s mean!” 

“It feels good though, right?” Kintsugi said, taking one of his popsicles and holding it against his neck as well. 

“It does,” Minori admitted. “But it’s a waste of a popsicle!” 

“You can still eat it when it’s melted,” Kintsugi said. 

“It’s not as good though!” 

“It tastes the same.” 

“But the experience is different!” 

Kintsugi smiled to himself as he took another bite of his popsicle. “Whatever you say.” 

“Hey, is that Kintsugi? Yeah, it is! Hey, Kintsugi! Kintsugi!” 

Kintsugi looked up to find a group of several boys walking towards them. A boy with a bat slung over one shoulder waved at him. To his regret, Kintsugi did recognize him. 

“Tetsuo,” Kintsugi greeted reluctantly. 

“Over here, man! What’re you doing? Are you working?” Tetsuo called. 

“I’m not,” he said. 

“Cool, come with us! We’re gonna play a game, but we’re short a person,” he said. 

“I can’t,” Kintsugi said. 

“What? Why not?” 

“I’m with a friend,” Kintsugi said. 

Tetsuo’s eyes darted over to Minori and widened. Minori, purposefully acting oblivious to their exchange, continued to eat the popsicle. 

“Uh, that’s not a problem,” Tetsuo said quickly. “Hey, Kintsugi’s friend, you like baseball, right?” 

“Baseball?” Minori echoed. 

“You’ve never heard of baseball?” Tetsuo exclaimed. “Now you have to come! It’ll be easier to show you than explain it. C’mon, it’ll be fun!” 

Kintsugi sighed. “What a pain . . . you don’t have to come, Minori. It’ll be boring to watch.” 

Minori shook his head. “No, I’m curious! Only, is it alright if I bring a friend? It might take a little while, though, since I have to get her from the palace . . .” 

“That’s okay!” Tetsuo said. “The more the merrier, right? You know what, how about we just all go together, that way we can make sure you know where to go.” 

Kintsugi didn’t want to go, but already he could see Minori’s eyes alight with curiosity. And he knew that Minori loved introducing his friend Yuzuki to more things from outside the palace. “Fine,” he sighed. “But I’m calling pitcher.” 

He ate the remains of his popsicle as they walked through the Capital, Tetsuo enthusiastically explaining the rules of baseball to Minori. Minori seemed to be enjoying himself, but Tetsuo’s chatter grated on Kintsugi’s nerves. At least they weren’t far from the palace, so Kintsugi didn’t have to put up with it for too long. None of them were allowed inside, so Minori ran inside to get Yuzuki, leaving Kintsugi and the rest of them to wait outside. 

Tetsuo whistled. “Damn, Kintsugi! Why didn’t you tell us you had a friend that hot?” 

“Eh, she wasn’t my type,” another boy said. “Flat as a board!” 

“So? Boobs aren’t everything. I’m talking legs for days, man, legs for days!” Tetsuo said. 

And there it was, the reason he hadn’t wanted to spend time with them: Kintsugi’s friends were all idiots. 

Tetsuo elbowed Kintsugi. “Soooo? Is she your girlfriend?” 

Kintsugi sighed. “Minori’s a—” 

“Minori? That’s her name?” Tetsuo eagerly interrupted. “So she’s not your girlfriend? Does she have a boyfriend?” 

“I’m trying to tell you, Minori is—” 

“Do you have a crush on her?” Tetsuo said. “‘Cause, I mean, if you do, I’ll back off. Bro code and all that.” 

“That’s—” Kintsugi stumbled over his words. “That’s completely beside the point. Minori’s—” 

“I’m back!” 

Minori stepped through the side gate of the palace with a cheerful wave, pulling Yuzuki along by the hand. “It didn’t take as long as I thought it would!” 

“Whoa,” one of the boys behind Kintsugi said. “Now that’s a cute girl.” 

“Nah, Minori’s way cuter,” Tetsuo said. 

For some reason, KIntsugi kind of wanted to punch Tetsuo. Kintsugi was definitely going to save his most difficult throws for him. 

“This is Yuzuki!” Minori said, pushing Yuzuki in front of him. 

Yuzuki bowed politely. “Pleased to meet you. I look forward to watching you play baseball.” 

The mention of baseball roused the group. “Okay, let’s go!” Tetsuo said, raising his bat into the air.

There were a couple of baseball fields in the city—it was a popular game, and there were a few different teams around the city. They usually played against each other or teams from other cities around the country. Officially, Kintsugi’s friends were on a high school team, but they didn’t mind if he played with them for fun even though he didn’t attend school with them anymore. It had been a while since Kintsugi had played with them, though. He’d been busy with work and Minori. Kintsugi liked baseball well enough, but his friends could be annoying. He preferred spending time with Minori.

Still, as he stood on the pitcher’s mound with the ball in his hands, facing home base while MInori cheered in the stands, he had to admit he’d missed the game. 

“Yeah, Kintsugi!” Minori yelled. “Throw a fast one!” 

Frankly, Kintsugi was out of practice. He hadn’t touched a baseball for months. But for some reason, hearing Minori cheering him on made him feel as confident as if he’d been practicing every single day. 

Kintsugi wound up and threw the ball. 

“Strike one!” 

The heat of the day became a minor irritation in the back of his mind as he lost himself in the rhythm of the game. Throw balls, strike them out. Hit the balls, run the bases. Always, always aware of Minori in the stands, cheering like Kintsugi was the best player he’d ever seen. He watched Minori from the bench, enjoying his overblown reactions to the game, like it wasn’t the same game that every single one of Kintsugi’s brothers had declared “too boring to watch.” 

Kintsugi was still hot and sweaty, but in a good way. Although he was pretty sure the heat was getting to his head—for a moment there, Minori’s eyes had looked red. 

Their team won the game, of course; Kintsugi was a decent pitcher, and Tetsuo, despite being completely annoying, was the best first baseman that Kintsugi had ever played with. 

“Damn, I’m never going to catch up to you, am I?” the other pitcher said. “Admit it, you’ve been practicing in secret.” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “Maybe you’re just a bad pitcher.” 

“Wha—hey, say that again!” 

They tousled playfully until Minori’s voice drew Kintsugi’s attention. “Kintsugi, you were amazing!” 

Kintsugi turned to find that Minori and Yuzuki had left the stands and made their way onto the field. “That wasn’t boring at all!” Minori said.

Kintsugi shrugged. “A lot of people think it is.” 

“It was interesting to watch,” Minori said. “All the different ways you threw the ball . . . that’ll be super useful, I think.” 

Tetsuo burst into the conversation with an enthusiastic punch to Kintsugi. “That’s Kintsugi for you! So, Minori—it’s okay if I call you Minori, right?—you liked the game, yeah?” 

“Yeah!” Minori said. “Actually, I want to try hitting the ball, that’s why I came down here!” 

“You want to try? Uh, yeah, sure,” Tetsuo said. “You can borrow my bat. I can pi—” 

Minori turned his smile on Kintsugi. “Will you pitch for me?” 

Kintsugi’s cheeks felt warm; too much sun, probably. “Yeah. Sure. You want an easy one, or a hard one?” 

“Surprise me!” Minori said cheerfully. 

They took up their positions, Minori on home base and Kintsugi on the pitcher’s mound. No one else had bothered to take their positions, and instead stood scattered around the field. Tetsuo, because he liked to be annoying, was right next to the pitcher’s mound. 

“You’re not actually going to throw a hard one, are you?” he said skeptically. “C’mon, there’s no way she could hit that.” 

Kintsugi tossed the ball up and caught it. “We’ll see,” he said, and then wound up for the pitch. 

“Wait, hold up, you’re doing  _ that  _ pitch?” Tetsuo demanded. 

Kintsugi released the ball. 

The ball flew through the air. 

Minori’s eyes flashed red. 

The ball curved abruptly to the side.

Minori swung. 

The ball hit the bat with a loud smack, and vanished, moving so quickly that Kintsugi couldn’t see it. He squinted against the light, trying to see it, but found nothing. 

“Whoops,” Minori said cheerfully. 

Kintsugi snorted. “You couldn’t hold back?” 

Minori flexed playfully. “You know me, Kintsugi, I never hold back!” 

“Holy shit!” Tetsuo shrieked. “You never said she was good, Kintsugi! C’mon, she’s secretly on a team, isn’t she? Is she from Tanzaku-Gai? I’ve heard they let girls on their team. And this whole time you let me think she didn’t know a thing about baseball! How long are you here? You should join our team! We’ve never let a girl join before, but we can make an exception!” 

“Eh?” Minori pointed at himself. He was playing it clueless, but Kintsugi could tell he was laughing on the inside. “Me? I’m a boy.” 

Tetsuo stared at him for a moment, before clenching his fist tight and punching the air. “You’re a boy? Even better! That means we don’t have to persuade the coaches to make an exception! Come on, join the team. KIntsugi, you too. That way we’ll beat Tanzaku-Gai for sure!” 

“I told you, I’m not going back,” Kintsugi said, as he headed over to Minori. “Sorry about him. He’s a baseball nut.” 

“I don’t mind,” Minori laughed. He gave a cheerful wave to the rest of the boys. “I had lots of fun! But Yuzuki and I have to go home now.” 

“Oh, yeah,” Kintsugi said. “It’s pretty late. I’ll walk you home. See you guys later.” 

“Wait! Kintsugi, Minori, come back! I haven’t told you about my plans for the team yet. Minori would make a great third baseman, I bet!” 

“What—hey, I’m third base!” 

“Come back when you can hit a pitch like that!” 

Minori laughed as they left the field. “Your friends are a lot of fun, Kintsugi!” 

“They’re idiots,” Kintsugi said. 

“It was quite educational,” Yuzuki said. “However, I am not entirely sure what I am supposed to do with these.” 

Kintsugi looked down at the pieces of paper she held up. “Those are phone numbers. They want you to call them.” 

“Ah. I see. I will not be able to accept, as I do not have access to a telephone,” Yuzuki said. “Kintsugi, you may have them.” 

Kintsugi snorted. “Trust me, they won’t want me calling them instead of you.” 

“I can take them,” Minori said. 

“Never mind, I’ll take them,” Kintsugi said, taking the slips of paper from Yuzuki and stuffing them into his pocket. 

Minori stretched his arms up, towards the sky. Unbidden, Kintsugi’s eyes ran down the length of his body before he quickly jerked his head away. 

“We should get crepes,” MInori said. 

“You always want crepes,” Kintsugi sighed, even as he turned down the street that led to Minori’s favorite crepe stand. 

“Because they’re good,” Minori said. “Yuzuchii, you like them too, right?” 

“I do enjoy them. We don’t eat that sort of food at the palace. But if there is something else you would prefer, I would enjoy that as well.” 

“Kintsugi just doesn’t like sweets. He likes spicy food!” 

“Oh—I must admit, I don’t have the strength to handle spicy food at all.” 

“He can eat an entire pot of spicy curry all on his own!” Minori declared. 

“Incredible!” Yuzuki gasped. 

Kintsugi sighed and stepped up to the crepe stand. “One savory, and one chocolate and strawberry. Yuzuki, the same as Minori?” 

“That would be acceptable,” Yuzuki said. 

“Two chocolate and strawberry,” Kintsugi corrected, handing over the correct amount of money from his wallet. 

No one else was at the stand, so their crepes were ready quickly. They ate them as they continued to walk towards the palace. Yuzuki had finished hers by the time they arrived, and went through the gate, while Kintsugi and Minori lingered outside, slowly eating their crepes as they watched the sunset. 

“Thanks. I had fun today,” Minori said, giving Kintsugi a soft smile, the one that made Kintsugi want to do . . . something. Hold Minori’s face between his hands and never let go, maybe, or find a camera and take a picture so he could always remember it. 

Minori sighed. “And it’s going to be my last chance for fun, too!” 

“Is something going on?” 

“I’m taking the jounin exams again, since I didn’t pass them all the way last time,” Minori said. 

Kintsugi remembered the last time Minori had taken the exams, two years ago; he’d acted strange for months leading up to them. Minori seemed fine, now, or at least more fine than he had then. 

“You’re not upset about having to go home?” 

MInori considered this for a moment. “You know, I don’t think I am. How strange. It felt like . . . it felt like it would be impossible for me to think about home without being afraid. And I’m a little nervous, but not like I used to be when I thought about going home. Maybe it’s because Konoha isn’t my home anymore. My home is here.” 

Minori smiled up at Kintsugi. Kintugi’s cheeks felt warm. 

“You should go in,” he said, instead of any of the million other things running through his mind. 

“Ah,” Minori said, glancing at his finished crepe. “You’re probably right. The other guardians are probably wondering where I’ve been all day. I’ll see you when I have a day off again.” 

“See you,” Kintsugi said. 

Minori went through the gates with one last, cheerful wave. Kintsugi smacked his head into his hands. 

“You’re an idiot,” he muttered to himself. He crumpled up the wrapper from his crepe, tossed it into the nearest garbage bin, and headed off down the street. 

***

Heiwa blew dust off the cover of the book she had unearthed from the depths of the attic and smiled in satisfaction. “There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.” 

Carefully, she ran her fingers along the characters written on the first page. The Nidaime’s handwriting was as familiar to her now as her own, but the title still sent a thrill down her spine. 

_ Notes on the Hiraishin.  _

Unable to resist, Heiwa turned to the first page and settled down to read, squinting to read the faded characters in the dim lighting of the attic. The Nidaime’s journals were always a challenge to read, of course, that was part of the fun of them, but Heiwa always managed to work them out in the end. 

This time, however, it wasn’t long before she was forced to a complete stop. She’d read the page in question a dozen times, and yet it didn’t make any more sense than it had the first time. She had a feeling that not even working it out herself in her own journal would help, this time. Heiwa had studied ninjutsu extensively, but the Hiraishin relied on a field that she had practically no experience in. 

Fuinjutsu. 

Luckily, there was a fuinjutsu master in the village; Heiwa would simply have to ask him for help. She stood, dusted herself off, and headed for Narumi Uzumaki’s house. 

A few people waved at her or called out greetings as she walked through the village. Some of them knew her as a member of the Senju clan, but most of them she recognized from the various missions she had gone on since becoming a chuunin. Usually she would have stopped to talk with them, but today she simply waved at them or returned their greetings and continued on her way. 

Narumi’s house was quiet when she approached, but she could see lights on inside, so he must have been inside. He’d told her before that she was welcome to just come inside, but she always felt strange about intruding on someone else’s space like that. Instead, she knocked firmly on the door. “Excuse me? Narumi-san?” 

An explosion shook the house; startled, Heiwa jumped away from the door. It swung open before she could recover herself, and Narumi stumbled out, coughing and waving smoke away from his face. 

“Are you alright?” she asked. 

Narumi looked at her, surprised. “Oh, Heiwa! When did you get here?” 

“Just now. What happened?” 

Narumi ran a hand through his hair and glanced back through the open door, wincing slightly. “A little fuinjutsu mishap. I’m experimenting with the protective seals around the village and . . . well, it hasn’t been going well, let’s put it that way.” 

He certainly looked like he’d been having a difficult time; the bags under his eyes rivalled her mother’s after a long shift at the hospital, and his hair was mussed. He looked like he was in dire need of a relaxing bath, or at the very least a hot shower. 

He sighed and gave her a tired smile. “Anyways, what can I do for you?” 

“Ah—my family wanted to invite you for dinner,” Heiwa invented; Narumi was probably in need of a decent meal, if he was as exhausted as he seemed. “Godaime-sama too, if he can get time off.” 

“Oh,” Narumi said, blinking slowly. “Yeah, that would be great. It’s been awhile since we’ve all gotten together for dinner. Sakumo’s free . . . tomorrow? I think tomorrow, anyways.” 

Heiwa quickly ran through the schedule that her parents kept posted in the living room. “My parents should have time for dinner tomorrow, barring any emergencies. I’ll let them know.” 

Narumi gave her a tired grin and ruffled her hair. “Thanks, Heiwa. You’re a good kid. Now, I’m going to go see what’s salvageable in my office.” 

Heiwa wished him luck and left; she couldn’t in good conscience ask him to help her with a personal project, when he was so stressed from important work for the village. She did, however, have an alternative. 

Sakura had recently returned to the village. 

She could usually be found training with Heiwa’s team, but they weren’t meeting until tomorrow, since Sasuke and Hinata both had shifts with the Military Police today. She clearly wasn’t at Narumi’s house for fuinjutsu lessons, which left the many teahouses and cafes around the village that she liked to frequent. 

Heiwa found her at the third cafe she peeked into, reading through a scroll and sipping tea. “Sakura. Can I join you?” 

Sakura smiled up at her. “Of course! Tea is better with company. Here, let me move my things.” 

Sakura shifted the papers strewn across the table and waved down a waitress as Heiwa took a seat. Before too long, Heiwa was settled with a cup of green tea and a mont blanc, her preferred treat on the rare occasions that she went to cafes. “I’m surprised Itachi isn’t with you.” 

“He was for a while, but then he had a meeting to go to,” Sakura said. “Something about persuading Shikamaru to join the Rokudaime’s staff.” 

Heiwa smiled. “Good luck with that.” 

“I told him he’d be better off getting Ino to talk to Shikamaru,” Sakura laughed. “I’ve just been working on some fuinjutsu since he left.” 

“That’s actually related to what I wanted to talk to you about,” Heiwa said, pulling the Nidaime’s notes from her bag and sliding it across the table. “I was wondering if you could help me figure out the fuinjutsu here.” 

“Oh, wow,” Sakura gasped as she flipped through the notebook. “Are these the Nidaime’s original Hiraishin notes? Heiwa, this is incredible.” 

Heiwa sipped at her tea as Sakura read through the first pages of the notebook, slowing down as she reached the part where the fuinjutsu had gotten too dense for Heiwa to sufficiently comprehend it. Her brow furrowed slightly, and after a moment she sighed. “I mean, I kind of get it, but . . . well, my specialty is medical fuinjutsu, with a little bit of genjutsu-based fuinjutsu on the side. It would be better to ask Narumi-shishou about this.” 

“I went to him first, but he’s busy with a project for the village,” Heiwa said. “I didn’t want to bother him.” 

“Well, you’re going to hate hearing this, but that means your best bet is really Naruto,” Sakura said. “He loves this kind of thing.” 

Heiwa sighed. “I was afraid you’d say that.” 

Sakura giggled. “He’s not that bad.” 

“He’s obnoxious.” 

“Only because you react to him!” 

“He’s not even in the village.” 

“So write him a letter! Or just wait. He’s going to be back in the village soon. In his last letter he said they’re planning to come back in a few months.” 

“Ah, so I can say goodbye to the blissful peace and quiet I’ve been enjoying until now,” Heiwa said. 

“I can’t wait,” Sakura admitted. “It’s too quiet without them. And it’s strange being the only one from my team still in the village. Not that you and Sasuke and Hinata aren’t great! But it’s not the same.” 

“I can imagine,” Heiwa said. She glanced over at the clock and picked up the Nidaime’s notes. “I’m afraid I have to go now; I have a meeting with the Sandaime.” 

“Oh, have fun,” Sakura said. “I hope you don’t mind if I finish your mont blanc. I need sugar to get me through this bit of fuinjutsu.” 

“Go ahead,” Heiwa said, nudging the plate towards her. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

The training ground where she met with the Sandaime thankfully wasn’t far from the cafe where she had met Sakura, so she arrived with time to spare. Of course, the Sandaime was already waiting for her, as he always was. “Good morning, Sandaime-sama,” she greeted, as she set aside her bag. “More training with the Wind Release today?” 

The Sandaime gave her a fond smile. “Not today. I have something different for you to work on today.” 

He held out a scroll, which wasn’t unusual. The Sandaime usually gave her technique scrolls to work from, but she could already tell this was different. Heiwa unrolled the scroll, her breath catching in her throat as she took in the rows of names and fingerprints written in blood. “A summoning scroll?” 

“The monkey summoning scroll,” the Sandaime said. “You have met Enma, of course, in our training sessions. I believe you are ready for a summon of your own. I would understand, of course, if you would prefer your mother’s slug summons—” 

“No,” Heiwa said, blushing as she realized she had rudely interrupted him. “No, I’d like to sign the monkey scroll.” 

She pricked her thumb on a kunai and signed her name before spreading the blood over the rest of her fingers and leaving bloody fingerprints beneath her name. Her name wasn’t as neat as she would have liked it, but she hadn’t anticipated having to practice writing her name with her thumb. It would have to do. 

“I trust you know the seal for the summoning technique?” the Sandaime asked. Heiwa nodded and formed the seal. “Then go ahead.” 

Heiwa channeled chakra through her hands and slammed her hands against the ground. A puff of smoke appeared around them, eventually clearing to reveal a monkey, much smaller younger than Enma but with the same white fur. The monkey’s tail twitched back and forth as its eyes darted around the clearing. 

“Hello,” Heiwa said, after a moment. “My name is Heiwa Senju.” 

The monkey’s eyes landed on her. “ . . . Enka,” the monkey said at last, in a quiet, feminine voice. 

“It’s nice to meet you,” Heiwa said. She paused, not entirely sure what the protocol was for meeting your first summon, but eventually decided to treat it the way she would treat meeting a new member of Shisui’s staff. She bowed politely. “I look forward to working with you in the future. Please take care of me.” 

Enka, thankfully, seemed to appreciate the gesture and even returned the bow. “A pleasure to meet you, Heiwa-san.” 

“Excellent, you two seem to get along well,” the Sandaime said, chuckling fondly. “Now, the two of you will have some time to grow used to working together, but there is one thing that you have to learn in order to get the most out of your new partnership.” 

Heiwa straightened up. “What would that be?” 

“Enka,” the Sandaime said, “would you be so kind as to show Heiwa your transformation?” 

Enka nodded and straightened, and with a puff of smoke transformed into a staff. It stood upright of its own accord, without anyone it holding up. 

“This is the Adamantine Staff Transformation,” the Sandaime said. “The staff is remarkably strong, and while in this form Enka can still move on her own. For today, we will work on staff techniques, and you will get used to working with Enka. Now, are you ready to begin?” 

The staff moved over to her, and Heiwa wrapped her hands around it. “I’m ready.” 

They trained together throughout the afternoon, until Heiwa was soaked with sweat and the sun had almost started to set. Usually they trained until the sun had almost completely set, but today, Heiwa had other plans. 

“Do you mind if we stop here for today?” she asked, as they finished the most recent set of staff movements he had been teaching her. 

The Sandaime gave her a knowing look. “Of course, Heiwa-chan. We can meet again next week.” 

Heiwa bowed quickly. “Thank you, Sandaime-sama!” 

Enka disappeared in a puff of smoke, and Heiwa ran from the training ground, leaving Sarutobi chuckling behind her. “Oh, to be young.” 

She raced home in record time, only taking a moment to make sure no one was using the bath before throwing herself into the tub and washing off the grime of the day’s training. She usually let herself linger in the bath to relax after a day of training, but today she only gave herself enough time to get clean before leaving the bath. She used the blowdryer to dry her hair quickly and spent a few moments wondering if it was better to put it up in a ponytail or leave it down before firmly telling herself that her hair was a ridiculous thing to be concerned about. She didn’t herself get bogged down in clothing choices, instead grabbing the first things out of her closet. 

Well, almost. She ended up grabbing orange shorts and a red long-sleeved shirt, and shoved the shorts back into the closet. She didn’t even know why she owned those shorts. Once she had grabbed an outfit that didn’t make her look like she was dressing for two completely different seasons, Heiwa took one last look at herself in the mirror before heading out, waving goodbye to Rin and Kogane as she left. 

She had forgotten to check the clock on her way out, but she was fairly certain she had left herself enough time to reach her destination before the appointed time. Still, as she approached the restaurant, she saw that she wasn’t the first to arrive. 

“Neji,” she called out, drawing his attention. He smiled slightly as she came to a stop in front of him. “I hope you didn’t wait long.” 

“I only just arrived myself,” he assured her. 

They stood there for a moment, smiling at each other, before Neji seemed to realize what they were doing and gestured to the door. “Shall we?” 

“Of course,” Heiwa agreed, stepping through the door with Neji right behind her. 

The hostess greeted them and showed them towards a small, private area of the restaurant. Heiwa wondered if Neji had chosen this restaurant with that in mind; Heiwa tended to draw attention when they went out. She didn’t usually mind it, since it gave her the opportunity to meet people and speak to them, but she would prefer to be left alone with Neji tonight. 

Still, even though she had been looking forward to this all week, for a moment she wasn’t entirely sure what to say. A thousand possible sentences flew through her mind, but none of them seemed suitable for the occasion. Neji seemed to be having the same amount of trouble deciding what to say, judging by his silence. 

The thought made her laugh quietly; they had passed countless hours in conversation together, but now for some reason they were getting tongue-tied. 

“Something amusing?” Neji asked, an uncertain smile on his face. 

Heiwa shook her head. “It’s nothing. I was just thinking how funny it is that we have yet to start a conversation, when usually the difficulty is in getting us to stop.” 

Neji smiled fully, now, the uncertainty gone from the expression. “It is rather amusing, when you put it that way. You had training with the Sandaime today, did you not?” 

“I did—actually, it was rather interesting. More so than normal, I mean. . .” 

By the time the waitress came by, both of them had completely forgotten about selecting what to eat, and had to quickly pick random items from the menu. The food was good, of course, but Heiwa couldn’t even remember what she ended up ordering, too caught up in Neji’s soft smile, and the spark in his eyes when the conversation particularly intrigued him, and in the quiet strength in his voice when the conversation shifted to a discussion on their plans for the village in the future. 

She’d been . . . not afraid, perhaps, but nervous that their friendship wouldn’t translate well to something more, but by the time the waitress came by to inform them that the restaurant was closing, Heiwa found that she didn’t want the night to end. 

They both ended up hesitating outside the restaurant, neither of them wanting to go their separate ways to their clan compounds. 

Heiwa glanced up at the sky and the stars gleaming above them. “I’ve heard that you can get an excellent view of the sky from the Hokage Monument,” she said, glancing over at Neji. “If you’d like to go.” 

“I would,” Neji said. 

Together, they set off down the street, walking so closely that their arms bumped together. Neji’s hand nudged hers, and then shifted so that their fingers were interlaced. The night was cool, but Heiwa’s cheeks felt warm. 

They sat on the Hokage Monument, their hands still twined together, and stared up at the stars until they were chased away by the rising sun. 

***

“What, now you have a summons?” 

Hinata paused in the middle of practicing her Gentle Fist stances to glance over at Sasuke, who was staring down Heiwa’s monkey summon, Enka. 

Heiwa arched an eyebrow. “Jealous, Sasuke?” 

Sasuke snorted. “You wish.” 

Heiwa gave him an amused smile and went back to practicing with Enka. They were training Fire techniques, today; yesterday they had worked on Water, which Hinata had joined them for. Today she was meant to be training with Neji, but he had been sent off on a sudden mission. Sasuke had been busy with some clan business earlier in the day, but now that he had arrived, they could train together. They’d gotten better at training together, Hinata thought, meeting each other somewhere in between Sasuke’s aggressive approach to sparring and her own hesitant one. 

Sasuke came to stand next to her, mimicking her Gentle Fist stance. She wasn’t technically supposed to teach it to people outside the clan, but she supposed it wasn’t really teaching if Sasuke just did his own thing while she happened to be practicing the Gentle Fist. 

He was distracted, though, occasionally glancing over at Heiwa and Enka with a disgruntled expression on his face. Hinata waited to see if he would work out whatever it was on his own, but the expression still hadn’t left his face when Heiwa bid them goodbye to meet with Shisui and his ever-increasing staff. 

“Is . . . is something wrong?” Hinata asked. 

“No. Yes,” Sasuke said, his breath escaping him in a huff. “We’re the only ones without summons.” 

Hinata blinked at him, not entirely sure what was so problematic about that. “We are?” 

“Naruto has toads,” Sasuke said. “Minori got snakes when he made Tokubetsu. Sakura got sparrows while she was in Uzushio, and now Heiwa has monkeys.” 

“Shino and Shikamaru and Ino and everyone else don’t have summons,” Heiwa pointed out. 

“I meant out of  _ us _ ,” Sasuke said. “We should get summons. You and I. Does your family have any?” 

Hinata shook her head. “No, we don’t normally use summons . . . um, what about you?” 

“Itachi has crows. He’d let me sign the summoning contract for that,” Sasuke said, only to scowl a moment later. “Except he shares the contract with Shisui. I don’t want to have the same summons as  _ Shisui _ .” 

Privately, Hinata wasn’t sure why Sasuke would have a problem with sharing summons with Shisui. Shisui was always nice to her, and she’d heard from Neji some of the plans they’d made to change things in the village and, hopefully, in the Hyuuga Clan. Hinata kept meaning to ask Heiwa if she could join in on their meetings, but she always backed out at the last minute. “And there’s . . . no other summons?” 

“Not in my family,” Sasuke said. “But Obito has summons.” 

Heiwa nodded; she trained with Obito’s summons on occasion. “So does Kakashi-sensei.” 

“Yeah, snakes,” Sasuke said. “Everyone has snakes.  _ Minori  _ has snakes. I don’t want to have the same summons as Minori.” 

He paused, for a moment, as if considering something, and then shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “You might, I guess, but I thought you’d want to ask Obito about the wolf contract.” 

“Oh, Obito-sensei doesn’t have the wolf contract, I think the Hokage does,” Hinata said, before she fully registered what Sasuke had said. “I mean, me? Sign the wolf contract? But . . .” 

She wasn’t sure if she was up to the pressure of having the same summons as the Hokage. Wolves were supposed to be fierce and strong—would wolves even want her to summon them? 

“I think they suit you,” Sasuke said. 

“I—really?” Hinata said, not daring to raise her voice above a whisper, as if that would make Sasuke take it back. 

Sasuke shrugged. “You’re strong. And you’re kind of a loner, but you care about protecting your friends and family. Like how a wolf protects the pack, or something. I don’t know. Anyways, I just think they suit you.” 

“O-oh,” Hinata said, warmth rising to her cheeks. She pressed her fingers together nervously. “Then, maybe we could talk to Obito-sensei, and maybe he might know of someone with a summons you might be interested in . . .?” 

“Maybe,” Sasuke said, already walking out of the training ground. “Let’s go.” 

Usually at this time of day Obito was spending time with his jounin friends. Hinata peeked into the windows of restaurants while Sasuke stormed through the doors and stormed right back out until they eventually found him in Yakiniku Q, throwing used meat skewers at Asuma Sarutobi and Kogane Senju. 

“Oh, hey, you two!” Obito called, waving them over with a skewer “C’mon, join us for lunch. Sensei’s treat!” 

“What? Don’t treat them, Obito, you’re gonna make me look bad. I told my kids I wouldn’t treat them now that they’re all chuunin,” Asuma complained. 

“It’s too late for lunch,” Sasuke said, as he slid into the seat beside Obito. Hinata took a seat beside him, across from Kogane, who she knew vaguely from her time in the medical school. Kogane didn’t have much to do with the medical school, but he had been dating Rin at the time, so she had seen him in passing. She realized, with some discomfort, that she had never congratulated Kogane and Rin on their marriage. She wondered if it would be more rude to congratulate them now, months after the fact, or to not congratulate them at all. 

“Late lunch, early dinner, take your pick,” Obito said. “I have a mission to get to after this, so we’re taking what we can get.” 

“We had something to talk to you about,” Sasuke said, and then turned to stare intently at Hinata. 

“Um,” Hinata said, only to fall silent as the weight of their gazes fell on her. Well, except for Kogane, who was intently turning over the meat. “Um, Obito-sensei, about . . . well, we wanted—I mean, I wanted to ask about the wolf summoning contract—” 

“You want to summon wolves?” Obito exclaimed. “Great! I mean, amazing! Oh, man, this is awesome, I was hoping one of you would. Sasuke, do you want wolves too?” 

“No,” Sasuke said. “I want something different.” 

“Well, that’s fine! I don’t have the contract, Shishou does, but I can get it from him. I’m gonna go right now! Wait here, enjoy your food, I’ll be right back!” 

Without further ado, Obito stood and clambered over the booth and escaped from the restaurant. 

Sasuke turned his gaze on Asuma and Kogane. “What about you two?” 

“What, me? I mean, my old man has the monkeys,” Asuma said. “But I never signed it.” 

“Heiwa signed it. Not interested,” Sasuke said, looking at Kogane. “What about you?” 

“He’s got slugs,” Asuma said. Sasuke made a face, and Asuma laughed. “Yeah, I know, right? Apparently they’ve got nice healing properties or whatever. Doesn’t really seem like your thing, though. Hey, you like cats? I know someone who’s got a cat summoning contract. At least, I think it was cats.” 

“I don’t like cats.” 

“No? Well, does it have to be a summons? You could just get a ninken or something,” 

“It has to be a summons.” 

“It does, huh? How about wild boars? I think I heard of someone who summons boars.” 

Hinata glanced over at Kogane. “U-um, Kogane-san.” Kogane looked up at her; words momentarily failed her, only to burst out all at once. “C-congratulations!” 

Kogane blinked at her. “I have done nothing to be congratulated for.” 

“Not so!” Asuma interrupted cheerfully. “You did a great job of grilling my meat.” 

“This is not your meat. This is Obito’s meat,” Kogane said, smoothly fending off Asuma’s attempts at snatching up the meat from the grill. 

Hinata’s face felt hot with embarrassment. “I-I meant, for your wedding . . .” 

Kogane nodded. “Ah, yes, wedding congratulations. Thank you. We’re very happy.” He gave her a small bow, and Hinata automatically bowed back. 

Asuma snorted. “Your hair’s getting in the dipping sauce, Kogane.” 

“So it would seem,” Kogane said, carefully plucking his long, blond hair out of the dipping sauce. 

“So you don’t know anyone with any summons,” Sasuke interrupted as Kogane attempted to clean his hair with a napkin. 

“I know plenty, you’re just a picky brat,” Asuma retorted. “Just sign the wolf contract or something if you’re that eager. Or take your chances with reverse summoning.” 

“Reverse summoning?” Sasuke said, clearly interested. 

“Yeah. Have you ever tried to summon something without a contract? Of course not, right?” Both Hinata and Sasuke shook their heads. “The thing is, if you use enough chakra, you can get reverse summoned to an animal that you have an affinity with, and then you might be able to sign a contract with them. Of course, there’s no saying it’ll turn out in your favor. I mean, if you had an affinity with snakes, you might end up getting eaten by Manda or something. And it might just fail. But hey, worth a shot, right?” 

Sasuke made a thoughtful noise. Hinata wondered if she should try the reverse summoning, in case she ended up with an animal that suited her better than wolves, but eventually decided that it probably would fail for her. She liked wolves, anyways, and Obito would be able to help her train with them. 

“I’m back! And here’s the contract,” Obito declared, waving a scroll in the air. “We probably shouldn’t do it in here though. Last time I did a technique in a restaurant I got banned for life, and I am not ready to give up Yakiniku Q. Asuma, Kogane, you guys can have my meat! Sasuke, Hinata, follow me for the summoning experience of your lives!” 

Hinata followed Obito through the streets of Konoha, her heart hammering in her chest. The thought of what would happen if she failed at summoning was terrible, but she couldn’t stop it from circling around her mind. Would Sasuke still want to train with her? Would Obito still want to teach her? He wasn’t her genin sensei anymore—he didn’t have any obligation to teach her. And Sasuke was her partner in the Military Police, but he could always ask to be partnered with someone else. 

“Okay,” Obito said, once they had reached their usual training ground. “So, I’m pretty sure you know the basic idea. Sign your name, put your fingerprints down, and summon!” 

Hinata nodded; she had seen Obito summon his wolves enough times to know how to do it herself. She sliced her thumb on the kunai a little too deep, and the signature was a little smeared from the trembling of her hand, but at last she had five only slightly smudged fingerprints on the scroll. She formed the seal, wondering how much chakra to use—if she used to little she might fail, but then she also might fail if she used to much, and the weight of Obito and Sasuke’s eyes on her was making her head spin. 

Hinata slammed her hand against the ground and realized, a moment too late, that she wasn’t altogether sure how much chakra she had ended up using. 

Smoke filled the training ground, and for a moment she was afraid that when the smoke cleared, nothing would be there. 

But then a small, sharp bark rang through the air, and Hinata looked down to find a wolf at her feet, with oversized paws and an oversized head and fur a strange shade of grey that looked almost like a pale purple. 

“Aww,” Obito cooed, as the wolf puppy tried to get to its feet and promptly fell over. “She’s even younger than Noodles and Rice were. I don’t think she can even talk yet. What are you going to call her, Hinata?” 

Slowly, Hinata knelt down by the puppy, waiting for her to come closer and sniff at Hinata’s hand. The puppy tripped on her feet and ended up falling into Hinata, tail wagging in excitement. Hinata couldn’t resist smiling at the puppy, a fond warmth filling her chest. “Himawari. I’ll call her Himawari.” 

“That’s a good name,” Obito said, beaming down at the two of them. “For now, you two should just spend time together. Once she’s a little older we can start training with her. It won’t be long; wolf puppies grow surprisingly quickly. Sasuke, you should stick around too, so that she can get used to being around you as well. I’ve got to head out, though; Kakashi and I are meeting up for a mission. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” 

As soon as he was gone, Sasuke pulled out a kunai and pricked his thumb. “I’ll be back,” he said, and then he slammed his hand against the ground. 

When the smoke cleared, Sasuke was gone. Himawari stumbled towards the place where he had been standing, as if confused by his sudden absence, before tumbling into Hinata’s arms once again. 

“Don’t worry,” Hinata whispered to Himawari. “Sasuke-kun is strong. He’ll be back soon.” 

Himawari returned to wherever she had come from after only two hours, too tired to stay by Hinata’s side any longer. Hinata waited, running through the Gentle Fist style and the style Mikoto had taught her, spinning to look at the place where Sasuke had vanished from whenever she heard a sudden noise. 

The sun had set before Sasuke appeared in a cloud of smoke. He wavered, a hand clasped to his arm, and sank to his knees. “Sasuke!” she gasped, already rushing to his side, medical chakra coating her hands. 

Sasuke looked up and grinned at her, his eyes alight with fierce pride. His face was covered in thin scratches, and she shifted to heal them as soon as she had healed the long scratch on his arm. “I did it, Hinata. Watch.” 

He bit down on his thumb and slammed his hand on the ground, and a bird burst out of the resulting smoke, spiralling high into the air and circling around before coming to rest on Sasuke’s shoulder. Sasuke grimaced as its talons bit into his shoulder, but refused to bend under its weight. 

Even Hinata, who didn’t know much about birds at all, was fairly sure she knew what this one was. 

“Hawks,” Sasuke said, confirming her guess. “I signed a contract with the hawks. You can go now,” he added to the bird, who let out a surprisingly human noise of irritation before vanishing in a puff of smoke. 

Hinata smiled at him. “They suit you.” 

Sasuke, she thought, looked pleased at what she had said. “They’re a good summons to have. I can fly on the larger ones, and the smaller ones can be used as spies or messengers, and they’re fierce in battle.” He held up his other arm, showing off another array of scratches and a few deeper gouges. “They made me climb out of a ravine and fight one of them once I got out.” 

Hinata moved to that arm, healing it as well. “We . . . we should celebrate,” she suggested, once she was finished. 

Sasuke nodded and got to his feet. “We should. Tomorrow, at lunch. I’ll ask my mother to make us food. We have a patrol tonight.” 

In the excitement of the day, Hinata had almost forgotten. “Oh—we should go, then.” 

Sasuke nodded and headed out of the training ground, and Hinata hurried to catch up to him, still smiling at the thought of training with Himawari. 


	54. Interlude: Year 3, Part 3

If Sasuke was a more suspicious person, he would have thought that he was cursed. First, he had run into Minori during the written test for the jounin exam, and had subsequently gotten so irritated that he hadn’t been able to focus for the first five minutes of the test. And now this. 

Hana Inuzuka grinned at him, looking far too laid back considering they were in the middle of the jounin exams. Izumi, tucked up against Hana’s side, gave Sasuke a cheerful wave. Neji stared at him stoically from the other side of the room, and Heiwa, sitting at his side, did the same. 

Sasuke could not believe that he had the misfortune to have them as his jounin exam proctors. 

He slouched against the wall, tuning out Izumi and Hana’s teasing comments and the occasional sarcastic interjections from Heiwa and Neji until the door opened again. 

“Listen up, because I’m only saying this once!” Ibiki barked. “Threats have been issued to the Daimyo’s son, and your mission is to protect him from the kidnappers while bringing him to his destination.” 

Without another word, Ibiki stalked towards Sasuke and shoved something at him. Sasuke took it automatically, almost dropping it when it was heavier than he expected. 

Ibiki glowered at him. “Any questions?” 

Sasuke stared down at the sack of flour in his arms with a sense of dawning horror. The henohenomoheji drawn on it stared back at him. 

It was official: he was cursed. 

He was so stunned by the sack of flour that he almost forgot to ask questions; thankfully, Heiwa cleared her throat and reminded him that there were other people in the room. He ran through his questions briskly, covering the usual subjects that they brought up in the Military Police briefings and normal mission briefings, and then Ibiki left for a moment. 

“You’re holding it wrong,” Heiwa said promptly. 

“What,” Sasuke said. 

“It’s a child,” Heiwa said, nodding at the sack of flour. “You’re holding it wrong.” 

“It’s a fucking sack of flour,” Sasuke said. 

“Don’t speak about the Daimyo’s son that way,” Neji said. 

Sasuke hated them both. “You hold it, if you care so much,” he said to Heiwa. 

“Fine. Maybe I should,” she said. 

“No,” Sasuke said grudgingly, after a few moments. “No, you need your hands free for ninjutsu.” Neji needed his hands free for taijutsu, as did Izumi. Hana was their medic; she needed her hands free in case of an emergency, and putting the client and the medic together was just asking for every enemy to target them. 

Sasuke was the team leader; that meant that the client was primarily his responsibility. If anything went wrong, he was to blame. 

“I’ll hold it,” he said. 

“At least hold it properly,” Heiwa said. 

Sasuke righted the sack of flour. “There. Fine. Happy?” 

“Ecstatic,” she said. 

Izumi stepped forwards. “It would be better if you made a carrier for it,” she said. Sasuke stared at her, trying to communicate with his eyes alone that he had no idea what she was talking about. She rolled her eyes, an expression that made him scowl at her automatically, and held out a hand. “Here, give me your jacket.” 

Izumi did something with his jacket that ended up making a sling for the sack of flour, leaving his hands free while it was held to his chest by the sling. Heiwa and Neji were both silently laughing at him; Hana wasn’t even doing him the courtesy of being silent. For the second time since running into Minori during the written test, Sasuke wondered whether becoming a jounin was worth his dignity. 

He was going to pass this exam, if only so he never had to suffer through it again. “Neji, Heiwa, take point. Izumi, in the center with me. Hana, in the rear with the Haimaru brothers. Let’s go.” 

They kept formation as they ran towards the designated point, and made it five minutes before Neji called out, “Incoming. Three from the left, three from the right, and four from the front.” 

“Neji, Heiwa, take the front. Hana, the right. Izumi, the left with me,” Sasuke ordered. They shifted to intercept the enemies, falling into position with time to spare. The first enemies appeared, their hands already forming seals. Sasuke whipped out a series of shuriken, forcing them to dodge out of the way; one of them ran out of the path of one shuriken into another, a clear sign of Izumi’s genjutsu. Izumi followed up with her taijutsu, swiftly knocking out the one who was still attempting to shake off her genjutsu and then moving on to another, as Sasuke engaged the remaining enemy from a distance. He wanted to get close, to engage his opponent in taijutsu, but he knew better than to do that with the client strapped to his chest. 

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a spike of earth that could only be Heiwa’s handiwork; she and Neji worked well together, which was why he had positioned them next to each other. Behind him, he heard a triumphant howl from one of Hana’s dogs. 

He managed to pull off a tricky maneuver with wire and a few shuriken to tie up the shinobi he’d been fighting a few moments before Izumi managed to catch her opponent in a genjutsu and knock him out. He turned to see that Hana was handling the last of her opponents, while Neji and Heiwa had neatly captured their four and buried them in earth up to their necks. 

Once all enemies were tied up and accounted for, they got back into formation and continued towards the drop off point. They’d fought one battle, but Sasuke knew better than to relax. When the ground shifted beneath his feet, he reacted instantly, leaping up into the trees just as the ground burst open and a horde of shinobi leapt through. Sasuke slammed his fist into the face of the one that went for him, sending him crashing to the ground, and took a moment to scan the battlefield. A pillar of earth crashed into another shinobi and pinned him to a tree, as Neji swiftly closed off the tenketsu points of another. Izumi was pinned down by three more shinobi, one arm hanging limply at her side, and Sasuke sent down a flurry of kunai and shuriken to assist her. He brought down one of them, and one of Hana’s dogs leapt in to take care of another and then help Izumi with the last. 

Sasuke jumped down from the tree as soon as the battlefield was cleared. “Hana, take a look at Izumi’s arm,” he said, as he pulled out wire and started to tie up the nearest opponent. 

“C’mere, babe,” Hana said, strolling across the battlefield to reach Izumi’s side. “Damn, that’s gonna leave a badass scar.” 

Sasuke finished tying up the first opponent and moved on to the next, until all of the shinobi were taken care of. By that time, Hana had finished with Izumi’s arm, so he brought them back to order and had them continue on their way. This time, they managed to make it the rest of the way to the designated point, where Ibiki was waiting for them. 

“Took you long enough,” Ibiki said. “Follow me to the waiting room.” 

They returned to the building where the written exam had been held. Ibiki opened the door and gestured for Sasuke to enter. “You’ll be called when it’s your turn to fight,” Ibiki said, and then the door shut again. 

He scanned the room. Most of the chuunin in the room he wasn’t familiar with, but Sai was drawing something in a corner, and another Uchiha in the Military Police nodded at him in greeting. 

“Sakkun! Over here!” 

And, of course, Minori was there. 

Sasuke sighed and reluctantly crossed the room to take the seat beside Minori. “Minori.” 

Minori grinned at him. “I thought you were gonna ignore me for a minute there, Sakkun.” 

Sasuke had to admit, the thought had occurred to him. It had been extremely tempting until he realized that ignoring Minori had the potential to make him even more annoying. 

“It’s been ages since we talked. Last time I took the exams, no one I knew was there. What’ve you been up to? You never write me like everyone else does!” 

“It’s been fine. Busy.” Mostly, Sasuke had been busy training for the jounin exams with any jounin he could get his hands on—most jounin he knew had been out of the village frequently in recent months, so he rotated between teachers as he could get them—or working for the Military Police. “I have hawk summons now.” 

Minori laughed. “You make something so interesting sound so boring! Hinata told me all about it.” 

Which was exactly why Sasuke never bothered to write to him; everything important would end up being covered by Hinata and Heiwa, anyways. And they told him everything that Minori had been up to, for the most part. Although their letters from Minori were always sparse on details of his training, which were what Sasuke was really interested in, and were instead filled with details of Minori goofing off in the Capital with his friends, which Sasuke couldn’t care less about. 

“How’s training with the Guardians?” 

“Hmm . . . pretty good!” Minori said. “I can do flips and handsprings now. Wanna see?” 

Sasuke considered the combat applicability of handsprings and nodded. “Sure.” 

They pushed a few chairs out of the way so Minori had space to maneuver, and then Minori showed off a series of flips and handsprings, backwards and forwards, while Sasuke watched, Sharingan activated. 

“And that’s . . . useful?” Sasuke said doubtfully. 

Minori grinned and turned a cartwheel. “Not really. But it’s fun!” 

Sasuke scoffed. Typical Minori, to go on for several minutes and not actually say or show anything useful. 

The door opened, as it had once already since Sasuke had entered the room, but this time the proctor called, “Uchiha. Not you—Sasuke.” 

Minori righted himself and waved Sasuke off. “See you, Sakkun! Good luck.” 

“Don’t need it,” Sasuke said shortly. 

The proctor led him to a circular room with a balcony for jounin to observe the match. Sasuke scanned the room, noting the various people he recognized around the room. The Hokage was there, of course, and Shisui, and the parents of some people he’d been in the Academy with, and a bunch of people from the Military Police. He didn’t see any of his immediate family there, which wasn’t surprising. His mother was probably busy, and Itachi was probably working. 

The Hokage gave Sakumo a brief smile before nodding towards a jounin. “We’re ready.” 

Sasuke turned as a door opened, his eyes widening as his opponent jumped down from the balcony. His mother gave him a solemn nod; her expression was stoic, but he could see the pride in her eyes. 

Still, he knew that she wasn’t about to make it easy for him. 

He returned her nod and prepared himself for the fight to come.

“Begin!” 

Sasuke immediately flew through a series of seals, blowing out a stream of white-hot fire. A series of kunai and shuriken, heated by the fire, flew towards him. Sasuke drew his own shuriken and kunai from the pouch, some trailing wires and others not, and hurled them around the room, deflecting most of the weapons headed towards him. He leapt out of the way of those that he hadn’t deflected, dashing towards his mother and aiming a blow at her throat. She deflected his attack smoothly and returned it with a flurry of blows. 

Sasuke engaged with her for a few moments to display his skill with taijutsu before leaping back, biting down on his hand, and slamming his hand to the ground. 

Smoke erupted through the room, and a hawk’s call rang in his ears. Sasuke took advantage of the smoke to move from his previous position, darting around the room and grabbing a series of the wires that now littered the ground. 

Lightning arced down the wires as he channeled chakra through them, illuminating his mother’s silhouette leaping towards him. Sasuke barely managed to dodge out of the way of her kick, and probably would have ended up disgracefully scrambling away from her next attack had the hawk not swooped in to attack, pecking at her face and grabbing her hair. It wasn’t enough of a threat to truly distract her, but it was enough to make her glance away for a moment as Sasuke reached back and unfurled his fuuma shuriken. 

The shuriken whipped through the air; his mother dropped underneath it reflexively and then stood and faced Sasuke. 

Sasuke jumped back and assumed a defensive stance, and, in doing so, yanked on the wire that had been attached to the fuuma shuriken. 

It wasn’t enough to fool his mother, of course. She was an experienced jounin, and she was familiar with most of Sasuke’s skills. But both the shuriken and the hawk further served to distract her; she turned and dodged out of the way of the shuriken, and Sasuke took advantage of the brief opening to dart forward with an open palm. 

He couldn’t see the tenketsu points with his sharingan, but he could memorize their rough locations. His hands darted out, striking the points in the arm closest to him. His mother kicked him away and jumped back to get more space between them, but too late. 

Sasuke could tell from the surprise in her eyes that she hadn’t been aware of that little trick. 

Unable to suppress his smirk, he assumed another of the Gentle Fist stances, open palm extended. A challenge. 

His mother’s eyes narrowed, and she flew forward. But she was favoring that side, now, and he pressed his advantage. His mother’s Sharingan activated, and he followed suit. She could read his attacks more easily, but he could do the same. Like this, they were very nearly evenly matched; the hawk had decided to let things play out, and circled overhead, watching. 

Sasuke wasn’t sure if it would intervene or not; they believed very much in being self-sufficient. But that was fine. Sasuke had a plan of his own. 

His mother struck at his neck; Sasuke bent back, dodging the blow, and then kept going until his hands touched the ground as he kicked up his legs, striking his mother squarely in the chin as he flipped over. 

His mother reeled back as Sasuke righted himself, her hand clasped to her mouth. 

Sasuke, not hesitating for a moment, slammed his open hand directly into her stomach. His mother coughed, blood leaking through her fingers, and sank to her knees. 

Sasuke pressed his kunai to her throat. 

She didn’t move. 

“Match!” the Hokage declared. Sasuke lowered his kunai, and his mother stood and bowed to the Hokage. After a moment, Sasuke did the same. “Well done, Sasuke. Report to the medics, both of you. You’ll receive your results once you’re done.” 

Even though Sasuke wasn’t injured much at all, aside from a few cuts and bruises that he hadn’t even really noticed, he went to the hospital as ordered, walking alongside his mother. 

They walked in comfortable silence until they reached the hospital. She looked up at him and gave him a small smile. “Well done, Sasuke. Your father would be proud.” 

With that, she walked ahead of him into the hospital. Sasuke watched her go and wondered when his mother had started to seem so much smaller than him. 

“Sakkun!” 

Sasuke very nearly walked right back out as he spotted Minori sitting beside Sai and, for some reason, Shin and Nawanuke in the hospital lobby. “Why are you here?” 

“Waiting for results!” Minori said cheerfully. “Last time they gave them to me in the hospital, but I was knocked unconscious that time, so I wasn’t sure how they did it normally.” 

“I was given mine in my hospital room, too,” Shin said cheerfully. “And I’m here as Sai’s moral support, and Nawanuke is here just because!” 

Nawanuke flipped Sasuke off and slouched deeper in his chair. 

“Who did you fight?” 

“I fought Shin,” Sai said. 

“And you did amazing!” Shin declared. “You’re gonna be a jounin, or I’ll eat my pants.” 

“And I fought Daddy,” Minori said. 

“Kakashi or Obito?” Sasuke said. 

Minori stuck out his tongue like he was five instead of sixteen. “Kakashi-sensei, obviously! We summoned snakes and he used his mokuton, it was pretty neat. What about you?” 

“My mother,” Sasuke said. “Show me more of those flips sometime. They came in handy.” 

Minori grinned at him. “Told you so, Sakkun. C’mon, sit and wait with us! Jii-chan’s gonna be here eventually.” 

They ended up waiting for a few hours, which Sasuke passed by contemplating his training and shift schedule for the next few weeks while Minori and the others chatted idly. They fell silent, however, when the doors opened and the Hokage spotted them and walked over to them. 

“Your results,” he said, handing a file each to Sasuke, Minori, and Sai. 

Sasuke immediately opened his, taking a brief moment to note that he’d been given the rank of jounin before going to the details of the performance review. He didn’t get any further than the written exam, however, before he was nearly thrown off his chair from the force of Minori’s hug. 

“Sakkun, I passed! What about you?” 

“Passed,” he said. 

“And me as well,” Sai added cheerfully, even though no one had asked. 

“Then we’ll celebrate!” Shin declared. “You, me, and Shino and Kiba, and Nawanuke and Akane, too!” 

“What? Why me?” Nawanuke complained. 

Not interested in listening to Nawanuke, Sasuke took his results and left, aware of Minori following after him but not caring enough to stop him. Minori ended up following him all the way to the gates of the Uchiha compound, at which point Sasuke turned to face him. 

“Dinner?” he asked. 

Minori shook his head. “No, I’m going back to the Capital. I just wanted to say thanks.” 

Sasuke didn’t see what he’d done to be thanked for, so he just shrugged and put his hands in his pockets. 

Minori grinned at him. “So? Do you want your thanks, or not? You’ll like it, I promise, but I’d rather do it in your garden than out here.” 

In response, Sasuke turned and led the way into the Uchiha compound. Laughing, Minori followed him, ignoring the dirty looks some of the clan members gave them. Sasuke glared at them whenever he spotted them, and most of them were quick to look away after that. His mother wasn’t home yet, so Sasuke led them straight to the backyard, not even bothering to go through the house and put on slippers. 

“Okay, show me,” he said. 

Minori kicked off his sandals and launched into a handspring, which in turn led to a series of kicks and punches. Sasuke watched, Sharingan active, as he moved through a series of increasingly acrobatic and fluid taijutsu moves. Sasuke could see them working well with the Uzumaki taijutsu that he’d already incorporated to the style, and they could potentially add an element of unpredictability to the bits of the Gentle Fist style that he used. 

Minori ended this display with a bow. “Tah-dah! Useful?” 

“Hn. I think so,” Sasuke said. “Thanks.” 

“Don’t thank me! I got it from one of the Guardians, and he said it was okay if I showed it to you,” Minori said. “Anyways, that’s all I wanted to do. I should probably be leaving—” 

“Minori!” 

Sasuke glanced towards the road to find Itachi and Shisui waiting there; Shisui waved at them, and Minori waved back. “Come over here,” Shisui called, beckoning to Minori. “It’ll just take a second!” 

Minori darted over to the road to talk to them. Not particularly interested in whatever it was, Sasuke instead started trying out some of the moves Minori had shown him. He wasn’t flexible enough for some of them, but maybe Hinata might be interested in learning them. She didn’t have the Sharingan, but he was confident that he could teach her anyways. 

Still in the middle of a handspring, he was upside-down when Minori came back over and started to slip his sandals back on. But he could tell that Minori wasn’t smiling. 

Sasuke righted himself, though, and Minori was smiling as cheerfully as ever. “Congrats on the promotion, Sakkun, but I have to go now. Duty calls, you know. Bye-bye!” 

“Yeah, bye,” Sasuke said, as Minori darted out of the yard and ran down the street. He wasn’t sure exactly what that was about, but he still found himself saving the moment in his brain for future reference. If nothing else, Hinata and Heiwa would want to know that Minori had been acting strangely after Shisui spoke to him. Heiwa might even know what the conversation had been about. 

Things had been changing in the village recently. Shisui wasn’t even Hokage yet, and already he’d been building up his staff. He’d offered Sasuke a position, but Sasuke was more interested in the Military Police, so he had refused. He’d been given more responsibilities and duties lately, and with that had come increasing knowledge of the tension in the village. 

There was definitely something going on—Sasuke doubted that the police had been instructed to keep an eye out for individuals wearing black coats with red clouds for no reason, after all. 

Whatever it was, Sasuke doubted it was good, and so he cast any concerns about Minori out of his mind and shifted into one of the Gentle Fist stances. 

***

Even late on a Sunday, the artisanal district of the Capital was crowded. Minori was almost thankful for the way his shinobi gear tended to make people give him a wide berth, even if he hated the way people warily eyed his headband. At the very least, he consoled himself, it made it easy to keep an eye out for his destination. 

A familiar head of black curls exited one of the shops just ahead of him, and Minori put on a small burst of speed. “Kintsugi! Kintsugi!” 

Kintsugi turned, his eyebrows rising up in surprise, and Minori threw himself forward, catching himself with his arms around Kintsugi’s neck. Kintsugi stumbled back, his hands hovering somewhere above Minori’s waist. “Minori?” 

“I passed! For real, I mean—I’m a full-fledged jounin!” Minori pulled back just enough to grin up at him. 

Kintsugi’s lips turned up into that small, crooked smile of his. “Congrats. C’mon, I’ll buy you a crepe to celebrate.” 

Minori, laughing, tucked his arm through Kintsugi’s and pulled him down the street. “You always buy me crepes!” 

Kintsugi allowed Minori to lead the way down the street, at least until they reached their usual crepe stand, at which point Kintsugi took out his wallet and stepped up to the stand to place their order. Crepes in hand, they walked side-by-side from the narrow streets of the artisanal district to the wide, crowded main street. 

“Tell me what happened while I was gone,” Minori said. “I want to hear  _ everything _ .” 

“You were only gone for a week,” Kintsugi said, with a fond huff of laughter. “But fine. I finished an order—a custom set of chef’s knives for one of my brother’s coworkers. And then my other brother asked for some custom parts for some project of his for school.” 

“Is your Shishou doing better?” Minori asked—he’d never actually met the man, but Kintsugi had been worried ever since he’d been admitted to the hospital just before Minori had left to take the jounin exam. 

“Yeah, it’s just stress,” Kintsugi said. “The doctor said he needs to take time off, so my oldest brothers have been spending a lot more time at the shop. He’s been pestering Ma about her work, since we won’t tell him anything about work at the shop.” 

Kintsugi frowned, slightly. “He needs to learn to take it easy—he’s not young anymore.” 

“Are your brothers good to work with, at least?” Minori asked. 

Kintsugi shrugged. “They’re fine. They’ve always been good to me. But they’re twins, and they’re used to working together, and I’m used to working on my own or with Shishou. It’s different, that’s all. Working with new people always takes some adjustment.” 

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Minori murmured, his mind drawn back to the conversation he’d had before leaving Konoha. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Oh—nothing,” Minori said. Seeing the look Kintsugi was giving him, he continued, “Well, not nothing. It’s—I’ve been summoned back to Konoha.” 

Minori glanced over at Kintsugi, looking for a reaction. “Are you going to go?” Kintsugi asked. 

“I have to. It’s an order from the Hokage.” Technically, the word had come from Shisui, but he was going to be Hokage in less than a month, so Minori counted it as an order from the Hokage. 

“Do you want to go?” 

“Maybe. I don’t know. I like the Capital, and being one of the Guardians, and my friends here. And . . . and if I went back, I’d have to live with my parents again.” 

Kintsugi didn’t ask; Minori liked that about him, how he didn’t push Minori to talk about things he preferred not to talk about, how he waited until Minori was ready to talk about them. “You could get a place of your own,” he suggested. 

“I could, but I’d feel bad. I . . . I don’t want them to feel hurt.” 

Kintsugi stared over the heads of the people passing around them, a thoughtful crease between his brows. 

“I’ve been thinking about starting my own blacksmith shop,” he said. “My brothers are taking over Shishou’s shop soon, and I could work for them, but I’d rather go off on my own. Konoha would be a good place to open up shop. I was thinking of getting a place with an apartment above it, but it would be expensive. I could do with a roommate.” 

Minori stared at him. “Are—are you asking me to be your roommate?” 

Kintsugi looked at him out of the corner of his eye. “Interested?” 

“Yes—yes, of course I am!” A broad grin spread across his face. “Absolutely, I’m interested.” 

Another small, crooked smile crossed Kintsugi’s face. Minori couldn’t help but return it. “Good. I’m glad.” 

“When can you be ready?” Minori asked. “Shisui wanted me back by the end of the month.” 

“I can be ready by then,” Kintsugi agreed. 

If not for the crepe in his hand, Minori would have hugged Kintsugi again. On second thought, he didn’t even care about the crepe, so he dropped the remainder into the nearest trash bin and threw his arms around Kintsugi. “Thank you! I have to discuss my dismissal with the Daimyo now. I’ll see you later!” 

Warmth blooming in his chest, Minori ran down the street, occasionally turning around to wave at Kintsugi until he could no longer see the other boy. He had to force his smile away when he went to meet with the Daimyo, who took the news surprisingly well, although Minori was forced to sit through several minutes of the Daimyo’s wife bemoaning the loss of “that darling little shinobi.”

The Guardians, well-used to members of the group coming and going, were at least pleased that one of them was leaving simply due to being called back to the village, and not due to death or serious injury. They promised him a party before he left, and were soon embroiled in discussions on which of them would be forced to be on duty during the party. They were in the middle of choosing lots when Minori left them in favor of seeking out Yuzuki. 

He found her relaxing in the garden, her attendants hanging around the peripheries. “You’re back!” she exclaimed, sitting up from her reclined position as he approached. “Come, sit, and tell me all about how it went. I want to hear all about your exam.” 

“It wasn’t so different from the last one,” Minori said with a small laugh as he sat down across from her. She poured him a cup of juice from the pitcher resting at her side, and he sipped from it gratefully. “The mock mission this time was a bodyguard mission, so I did well on that, and the individual fight went better than last time, too.” 

He’d had to fight Kakashi, which was better than having to fight Obito—Minori wasn’t entirely sure if he would have done better than last time if he had faced Obito again. Kakashi, at least, didn’t have the Sharingan.

“So I passed! I’m a full-fledged jounin now,” he declared proudly. Yuzuki clapped, and he took an exaggerated bow. “Thank you, thank you!” 

“We’ll have to celebrate,” Yuzuki said. “I’ll have the chefs prepare a cake for us to share.” 

Minori picked at the grass. “We’ll have to have it soon. I’ve been summoned back to Konoha. I’m going to leave in a month.” 

Yuzuki’s eyes widened for a moment before she looked down, avoiding his gaze. “Oh. I see. I suppose . . . I suppose if you were summoned, there’s nothing to be done about it.” 

Minori clasped her hands between his. “Don’t be sad, Yuzuchii. I’ll write to you, I promise, and you can come visit me whenever you come to Konoha with your family!” 

Yuzuki smiled tremulously and dabbed at her eyes with the corner of her sleeve. “I suppose I’ve always been curious to see a house built by the mokuton.” 

“Oh, I’m not living with my parents!” Minori grinned, excited again by the reminder. “Kintsugi said he wants to open up a blacksmith shop in Konoha, so he’s coming with me, and we’re going to find somewhere with an apartment above the shop so we can live there!” 

“Kintsugi is going with you?” Yuzuki said. 

Minori nodded. “Yeah.” 

Kintsugi had made it sound like it was something he’d been considering for a while, but Minori had to wonder if maybe it had been a spur of the moment decision, motivated by something other than a logical business decision—but no, he was being silly, he told himself firmly. 

“I’m glad,” Yuzuki said, giving him a small smile. “And, I must admit, a little jealous. To move out of my parent’s house, to live with friends and without servants—that is something I will never experience. Especially now that I am older . . . but let’s not think of such things. If my time with you is limited, then we must enjoy it to the fullest.” 

Minori did his best to enjoy the following month. Kintsugi was busy preparing for the move, splitting his time between Konoha and the Capital, so Minori spent most of his time with Yuzuki and occasionally with the other Guardians. He was alternately excited and terrified to return to Konoha, a strange mix of emotions that resulted in an overabundance of energy when he was awake and unsettling dreams when he slept. The closer he got to the end of the month, the less he wanted it to arrive.

When the date of their departure finally arrived, Kintsugi and Minori met at the entrance to the Capital, Minori with his gear packed into scrolls and Kintsugi laden down by a hefty lunchbox. 

“Ma wouldn’t let me go without it,” he said. “You’d think I was going all the way to Uzushio from the way she carried on.” 

“What did she make?” Minori asked, attempting to peek into the box only to be foiled by the tightly wrapped packaging. 

“What didn’t she make?” he said wryly. 

“I’m surprised she didn’t want to see you off,” MInori said. 

Kintsugi shrugged. “We said our goodbyes at home. Are you ready to go?” 

“As I’ll ever be,” Minori said, and together they set off down the road. The paved street soon turned into a dirt road, and the trees around them grew taller and thicker. “Have you ever been out of the Capital?” 

Kintsugi nodded. “Yeah, I’ve been all over Kaminari no Kuni.” 

“What, really? That’s so cool! I’ve never been; we don’t really get a lot of opportunities to go there. Kumo and Konoha don’t really get along,” Minori said. “Have you been to Kumo? Did you go with your Shishou?” 

“Maybe. I don’t remember it that well,” he said. “And no, that was before he found me. This was with my birth parents.” 

“You’re adopted? Huh. I never knew,” Minori said. 

Kintsugi let out a huff of laughter. “Shishou is  _ blond _ , Minori.” 

“I’ve never met him!” Minori protested, laughing. “Besides, you could always look like your mother. How did you end up in Hi no Kuni, though?” 

“My parents were merchants, I think,” Kintsugi said. “We travelled all over the place, and one day they ran into some trouble. Bandits or something, I don’t know. Shishou found me on the side of the road and took me in. Ma was overjoyed—my brothers were almost all moved out, and she missed having kids around.” 

“They sound nice.” 

“They are. She’d love you—she’d think you were too skinny,” Kintsugi said, shooting Minori a small, teasing smile. “You’d end up getting stuffed full of baked goods.” 

“What? Why haven’t you taken me home sooner?” Minori demanded, poking Kintsugi’s arm accusingly. “So mean, Kintsugi!” 

“I don’t know.” Kintsugi shrugged. “Maybe I just like having you to myself.” 

Minori’s cheeks flushed. “I—you can’t just—Kintsugi, wait!” 

“Better hurry up,” Kintsugi called over his shoulder. “Or I’ll order us spicy food for dinner.” 

They stopped for the night in a town on the way to Konoha, and then continued on the next day. They took their time traveling to Konoha, occasionally stopping early so they could look around the town and wandering leisurely along the road. Traveling as they were, carrying limited luggage and dressed in civilian clothing, they even managed to avoid drawing the attention of any unsavory types. 

There weren’t many other travelers on the road, other than a few merchants and travellers and the occasional shinobi, so both of them were surprised when, only a few hours away from Konoha, a carriage rattled down the road and came to a stop beside them. 

The door opened, and Yuzuki, dressed in a kimono that would be formal for anyone who wasn’t a princess, stepped out of the carriage. “I hoped I would be able to find you along the way,” she said. “I don’t suppose you would have room for another roommate?” 

“You want to come?” Minori exclaimed, grinning so broadly that his cheeks hurt. “Of course we have room! We have room, don’t we, Kintsugi?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “I won’t say no to another person to split rent with. So long as you don’t mind sharing space with a couple of boys.” 

“I would like nothing more,” Yuzuki said primly. 

Minori bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. “Oh, this is going to be fun! I’m so glad you decided to come. I didn’t think your parents would agree to something like this!” 

“Well,” Yuzuki said, coughing delicately. “What Mother and Father don’t know won’t hurt them. Oh, don’t look at me like that. I left them a note.” 

“You did?” 

“It said that I was going to Tanzaku-Gai to become a cabaret girl, but yes, I did,” Yuzuki said. “Now, would you be so kind as to assist me with my luggage?” 

The driver of the carriage, who didn’t seem to care one way or another what they were up to so long as he got paid, helped unload the luggage and then drove back to the Capital. Minori sealed Yuzuki’s bags away alongside his own, retrieving some of his own clothes for her as he did. 

“You can’t go traveling in a kimono, that’s just not practical,” he declared, as he scrounged through his bags for something that wasn’t a crop top. He was pretty sure that Yuzuki would look cute in a crop top, but it certainly wasn’t appropriate winter clothing. “Ah! Here we go, you can wear this.” 

Yuzuki accepted the bundle of clothing and looked around. “Thank you. But where should I change?” 

Kintsugi shrugged. “Behind a tree? We’ll keep a lookout.” 

Yuzuki looked fascinated. “Behind a tree. Remarkable. Very well, I will return shortly.” 

When she emerged, she was wearing the simple sweatpants and hoodie with a look that bordered on awe. “This is quite possibly the most comfortable clothing I have ever worn. Minori, I insist that you introduce me to your tailor.” 

“I bought them on sale,” Minori laughed. “But you can borrow my clothes whenever you like.” 

“If you’re going to talk clothes, do it while we walk,” Kintsugi said. 

“Yes, yes,” Minori laughed, as he made to seal up the bags. 

“Ah, one moment,” Yuzuki said, reaching into her bag. “I brought you a gift. Here.” 

She deposited a bottle into Minori’s hands. He popped the cork out of the top and sniffed delicately. “Yuzuki!” he exclaimed, suppressing his grin in favor of a surprised expression. “I am shocked and appalled! Tsk, tsk, liberating your mother’s supply of plum sake.” 

“Is it not a good gift?” Yuzuki asked. “I was so certain you would enjoy it.” 

“I haven’t even tried it yet,” Minori said, and without further ado took a sip from the bottle. The alcohol warmed his stomach, and the wine was just the right amount of sweet. “Oh, it’s a terrible gift,” he said solemnly. “You would both hate it.” 

Kintsugi plucked the bottle out of his hands and took a swig. “Mm. That’s good,” he said, sounding moderately surprised. 

“Oh, wonderful,” Yuzuki said. “I brought more, but I thought those should be saved for the housewarming. I haven’t tried it myself, but my mother adores it so much that I assumed it must be good.” 

Kintsugi held out the bottle. “It’s sweet, you’ll like it.” 

“Oh, I couldn’t possibly,” Yuzuki demurred. 

“Try it.” 

“Oh, very well, if you insist,” Yuzuki said, and proceeded to take a larger gulp than either of them. “Well! That is delightful. Minori, have some more, I must insist.” 

By the time they reached Konoha, the bottle was nearly empty, and all three of them were tipsy and giggling. “Izumo! Kotetsu!” Minori called, as soon as he caught sight of the chuunin at the gate. “Hello! Hello, I’m home.” 

He searched through his pockets, eventually locating his ID card, and held it out. “Shicchan-nii-chan asked me to come home,” he whispered to Izumo. 

“Ah, yeah, good old Hokage-sama,” Izumo snorted. “He still owes me that favor; I’ve been waiting to cash it in. You missed his inauguration by two days.” 

“I had, um, my friends!” Minori handed the bottle to Izumo in favor of grabbing Yuzuki and Kintsugi. “This is Yuzuki, and this is Kintsugi, and they’re my roommates now!” 

“Ah, right, I remember you,” Kotetsu said to Kintsugi. “You’ve already gotten the paperwork spiel? Good, good, make sure to finish it within the week and submit it to the Hokage’s office by then.”

“Welcome to Konoha, enjoy your stay,” Izumo said cheerfully, as he took a sip from the remainder of the bottle. He blinked a few times, staring down at the bottle in surprise. “Wow, that’s some good stuff. You kids have a fun time!” 

“We live . . . “ Kintsugi turned in a circle, staring around the village. “Hm. Over here, I think.” 

“We can’t live over there!” Minori protested, giggling. “Kintsugi, that’s where the training grounds are.” 

“Oh, right,” Kintsugi said. He stopped, and pointed in a different direction. “Then it’s this way.” 

“Oh, this is an adventure,” Yuzuki said, clearly delighted by the experience. “Are we lost?” 

“We aren’t lost,” Minori said. “This way! This is where the blacksmith shops are.” 

Still holding their hands, he led the way towards the area where he was fairly certain Kintsugi had set up the shop, waving at people he knew or thought he knew along the way. Somehow, he managed to locate the shop without too much trouble. With two people paying for rent, Kintsugi had been able to afford a shop on the corner of the street, with stairs at the back leading to an upstairs apartment and plenty of room downstairs for a small workshop. They stumbled up the stairs, nearly tripping over each other as they piled into the apartment. It was small, featuring one large room with a kitchen, a single bathroom, and a relatively large bedroom. 

“What a charming location,” was Yuzuki’s verdict. “Is this the whole thing?” 

“Yep!” Minori declared, unsealing their luggage and tossing it into the bedroom. “This is us.”

Yuzuki settled down against a bag, letting her head drop back against it. “Wonderful. I never want to move again.” 

Minori sat beside her, leaning his head against her shoulder. He had to visit Shisui, at some point, but right now he was warm and happy, and he didn’t want to spoil that just yet, not when Kintsugi was sitting down beside him and stretching his arm around Minori’s shoulders. 

“We need to buy futons,” Kintsugi said. 

Minori knocked his head against Kintsugi’s shoulder reproachfully. “Shh! Don’t spoil it.” 

They ended up staying in for the night, feasting on the food Yuzuki had brought and using Minori’s bedroll and accompanying blanket as bedding. Minori, tucked in between them, woke up in the morning to Yuzuki’s knee digging into him. He slipped out from under the blanket, careful not to disturb the other two, and dressed in his shinobi gear. 

He wasn’t sure how early it was when he left the apartment, but the Administration Building was already bustling when he arrived. He caught sight of a few people he knew—Shikamaru slumped over a desk, fast asleep, Itachi deep in discussion with several starry-eyed chuunin—on the way to the Hokage’s office, where he ran into two more familiar faces. 

Heiwa and Neji stood by the doors of the Hokage’s office, leaning against each other as they read over a clipboard. Heiwa had grown out her hair since he’d seen her; most of it was still short, but she had a long ponytail now. She looked older, and with a pang he realized that it had been three years since he’d seen her. 

She looked up as he entered, her eyes widening in surprise. Neji looked up as well, his eyes going first to Heiwa before moving to Minori. 

Minori grinned at her and waggled his fingers at her. “Hey, Hei-tan! Is Shicchan-nii-chan in?” 

“Call him Hokage-sama,” Heiwa corrected automatically. Her hands clenched on the clipboard. “Minori. You’re back. Obito-sensei didn’t mention you were coming home.” 

Minori rocked back on his heels, keeping his grin in place. “It’s a surprise! He doesn’t know yet. I only arrived yesterday.” 

“Yesterday?” her brow furrowed slightly. “Where are you staying?” 

“My place!” he declared cheerfully. “Me and a couple of friends have an apartment now. You should come over, I think Yuzuchii wants to have a party or something. I’ll let you know.” 

She nodded. “That would be nice. I—” She cut herself off, glancing around the room. “You should go in, he’s free right now. We can talk later.” 

Minori laughed. “You haven’t changed a bit, Hei-tan!” Before she could protest, he stepped forward and pulled her into a hug. After a few moments, her arms wrapped around him, her fists clenching in the fabric of his top. He let his chin rest on her shoulder, feeling her wiry hair brush against his cheek. It was strangely reassuring to realize that she was still taller than him, just as she had been when they were children. 

He pressed a kiss to her cheek as he stepped back. “I’ve missed you. It’s good to see you again.” 

“That’s enough of that,” Heiwa said, but she was smiling slightly. “It’s good to see you too. We should talk more once I’m off work. You should go see Shisui while he’s free.” 

“Okay, okay, I’ll let you work,” Minori said, waving at Neji as he headed towards the office. “See you, Necchin!” 

“That is  _ not  _ my name,” Minori heard as the doors closed behind him. 

Shisui looked up from the desk, a grin spreading across his face as he took in Minori. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite baby cousin! Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes. Have you gotten shorter since I saw you?” 

“Did you grow more grey hairs?” Minori teased. 

“What? I don’t have any grey hairs!” Shisui pulled a few strands of his hair straight, as if that would somehow allow him to see them. “That’s a cruel thing to tease about when you know I don’t have a mirror in here.” 

His grin melted away as Minori came to stand in front of the desk. “But that isn’t why I called you back. You might’ve noticed that I’ve replaced a lot of the old administration.” 

Minori, recalling Heiwa and Neji hunkered over their clipboard, nodded. 

“I’ll keep this to the point: I want you as an ANBU captain.” 

His heart stopped. 

“ANBU is the area where I have the fewest footholds,” Shisui said. “Not many people are willing to go into ANBU, and I was counting on an operative who chose not to return. You don’t have to accept, of course.” 

“I’m not even in ANBU,” Minori heard himself say. 

“You’re a jounin, you’ve served in the Twelve Guardians—you’re more than qualified to be a captain,” Shisui said, leafing through a file that Minori was certain bore his name. “And poisons, snake summons, Kamui . . . you definitely have the skillset.” 

“Are you sure it’s a good idea?” Minori asked, nodding towards the file. “I’m sure you have my psychological profile in there.” 

“You’d be working alone or with a team of ANBU,” Shisui said. “And let’s face it, all of your problems have been working with people you know.” 

Minori hated that that made him feel better. 

Shisui stood and walked around the desk, coming to a stop in front of Minori. “You don’t have to do this,” he murmured, setting his hands on Minori’s shoulders. “Say no, and I’ll set you up somewhere else—T&I, maybe, or R&D.” 

Minori smiled and patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Shicchan. I’ll do it.” 

Shisui’s eyes were at once relieved and achingly sad. “Thanks. You’re a good kid, Minori.” 

He clasped Minori’s shoulder firmly before stepping back and returning to his chair. “Cat will show you where to go.” 

Minori turned and saw a cloaked figure standing by the window. Their mask had painted whiskers and pointed ears, like a cat. He stepped forwards, heart fluttering against his ribcage like a hummingbird desperately trying to escape, and followed her out the window. 

When he finally returned home, it was late at night, and his arm burned with the seal-tattoo hidden beneath a bandage and a genjutsu. He trudged up the stairs to the apartment, pausing for a moment to take in the couch and television they had somehow acquired while he was away, before continuing into the bedroom. The bedroom, too, had acquired furniture—a curtain strung across through the room to make an area for Yuzuki, a chest of drawers for clothing, futons laid out on the ground. Minori flopped onto the unoccupied one and somehow gathered the strength to wriggle beneath the cover. 

Kintsugi made a questioning noise. “Minori? You’re home late.” 

“It’s okay,” Minori said. “Go to sleep.” 

Kintsugi rolled over and blinked at Minori slowly, his eyes still half-lidded and bleary with sleep. “You don’t have to pretend,” he murmured. “What’s wrong?” 

“I can’t tell you,” Minori said.  _ I don’t want to tell you.  _

Slowly, Kintsugi’s eyes closed. “If you’re sure. Night, Minori.” 

Minori buried his face in the pillow. “Goodnight, Kintsugi.” 

***

The good thing about traveling to the past was that Narumi was familiar with most of the members of the Akatsuki. He knew their skill sets, ways that they had been defeated before, and ways that they could be defeated again. 

The bad thing about traveling to the past was that he actually had to deal with the Akatsuki again. He’d been hoping to avoid it with some subtle interventions, but Madara had somehow managed to get his claws in them anyways, even with all three of the Ame orphans surviving. He wondered what Madara had told them, how he had convinced them to fight with him—

But that was for another time. 

Right now, he was on the tail of another group of Akatsuki, tracking them down to make sure the membership didn’t change from what he remembered. He’d had a brief moment of panic earlier, when Kakuzu had an unfamiliar partner, until Kakuzu had killed him and gotten Hidan as a replacement. Hidan was a pain in the ass, but at least he was a pain in the ass Narumi knew how to fight. 

There was no Sasori in the Akatsuki and no Itachi, but Deidara and Kisame were still there, and had ended up partnered together. They were the easiest ones to keep track of by far; they tended to leave a swathe of destruction in their wake. 

Orochimaru and Zetsu, by contrast, were impossible to track. Narumi wouldn’t have even known that the group had two more members if not for the occasional reports Orochimaru sent back. There was distressingly little information on Zetsu. 

Narumi had never found out how to deal with Zetsu, and he wasn’t getting any closer to finding out in this time, either. 

That left the remaining three members: Konan, Nagato, and Yahiko. 

Konan, at least, he was familiar with, and he knew of Nagato’s abilities with the Rinnegan, but Yahiko was largely a mystery. Jiraiya’s reports said that he left Ame occasionally on missions for the group, but Narumi had yet to encounter him. 

Narumi stopped on a branch and surveyed the area. 

“He’s gotta be around here somewhere,” he mused to himself. “He wouldn’t be in Iwa, right?” 

Roshi had been the one to tell him where he would most likely find Han, but Roshi could always have given him faulty information, either on accident or on purpose. Jinchuuriki weren’t exactly the most trusting bunch, after all. Even the news that the Akatsuki were hunting down Jinchuuriki to kill them and extract their tailed beasts had been met mostly with suspicion, as if this was somehow the start of a scheme that would end with Roshi locked up in a cell somewhere. Narumi hadn’t even managed to persuade Roshi to stop fighting him, and had ended up delivering the warning while dodging blows. He hoped that his encounter with Han would go better, but he wasn’t holding out much hope. 

A crash resounded through the forest. Narumi shifted on the branch, turning in the direction he had heard it come from. A second crash came from the same direction, and Narumi launched towards it, leaping from branch to branch. 

A flash of red caught his attention. Narumi adjusted his trajectory, moving towards that brief glimpse of color. As he drew closer, it became apparent that it wasn’t just training that he had stumbled upon—it was a battle. 

He stopped just short of bursting in on the battle, taking a moment to survey the fight. He’d found Han, at least, but he’d also found the Akatsuki—and not just any Akatsuki, either. They’d grown up since he’d last seen them, but there was no way he wouldn’t recognize Konan and Yahiko. 

A punch from Han blasted Yahiko into a tree, only for Yahiko to respond with a scythe of wind. Han evaded the wind, aiming an attack at Konan instead, but Konan burst into pieces of paper that flew at him like shuriken. Han held up his arms in front of his face to ward off the worst of the attack. Yahiko started another series of hand seals. Before he could finish the technique, Narumi hurled out a series of shuriken and threw himself after them, aiming a punch at Yahiko’s face. 

Yahiko evaded the attack, finishing the technique and shooting a jet of water from his mouth. Narumi quickly substituted himself for a branch on a nearby tree, and ended up watching from behind Yahiko as the branch broke into splinters. He hastily scrawled a seal to hide his chakra signature—something that Naruto had thought of, and which Narumi wished he had come up with—as Yahiko scanned the forest, searching for any sign of him. 

Well, if Yahiko wanted a fight so bad, Narumi would give it to him. 

A few seals later, and a series of clones had filled the area. Yahiko’s eyes widened briefly in surprise before one of the clones launched itself at him, a fuinjutsu seal that Narumi couldn’t quite make out the purpose of in its hand. Yahiko spat out another jet of water, destroying that clone, but was immediately swept into an exchange of blows by another trio of clones. 

“What’s your deal, Yahiko?” one of the clones taunted. “I thought the Akatsuki was all about bringing peace to the world! What’re you going after jinchuuriki for?” 

Yahiko threw out a wind scythe, slicing through the three clones attacking him only for three more to immediately take their place. “As long as the Five  _ Great  _ Shinobi Nations have the jinchuuriki,” he said, his hands moving through another series of seals, “then this land will never know peace.” 

He sent out another gust of wind; this time, one of the clones managed to dodge it, getting close enough to slap a paper seal to Yahiko’s arm only for Yahiko to kick it away hard enough to disperse it. “How many conflicts have started and persisted because of the jinchuuriki? The shinobi villages jealously guard their power and covet the power of others, stepping on the smaller villages as they squabble over who has the strongest village. The shinobi are meant to protect the people . . . but all they do is destroy. War, death, destruction . . . I’ll stop them all!” 

He slammed his hands against the ground, sending jagged rocks shooting towards the sky, impaling those of the clones who hadn’t evaded the attack fast enough. Instinctively, Narumi jumped away from his perch just in time to avoid getting speared through the chest by paper. The paper swirled through the air and came together, and Konan stood in front of him. 

Paper continued to move through the air, forming rings. Konan threw one towards him, and Narumi dodged just enough to avoid taking a hit to the chest, although the paper ring did slice through his sleeve and leave a bleeding score across his arm. Narumi pushed aside the pain and darted forwards, pushing to get close enough to Konan that the sharp rings were as much of a hazard to her as they were to him. 

“What did Madara tell you?” Narumi pressed. Konan’s expression flickered, just for a moment, before her usual stoic expression returned. “Did he tell you that he had a plan to stop all wars? A plan to create peace for everyone? Don’t you know—a peace that comes at a price like that isn’t peace at all!” 

Konan didn’t respond at all; Narumi cursed the fact that he’d somehow ended up fighting her instead of Yahiko, who had seemed more willing to talk. If only he could swap with Han—but he wasn’t really sure how well Han would take to being substituted with in the middle of a fight, and Konan didn’t look like she was going to give him the opportunity to actually go and talk to him—

An explosion wracked the area; Narumi steadied himself against the trunk of a tree and looked around. It was immediately apparent that the explosion had come from the fight between Yahiko and Han. 

“Yahiko!” Konan exclaimed, fleeing from their fight without a second thought. Narumi darted after her, stopping as he took in the scene that they had arrived on. Yahiko lay slumped on the ground, Han stood above him. Half of Yahiko’s clothing had been burned away by an explosion, and the air reeked of burned flesh. 

Before Narumi could even twitch, Konan had gathered Yahiko up as paper wings extended from her back. She took to the air, carrying Yahiko with her, and was gone. 

“Damn,” Narumi said, scratching his head. “I was hoping to get some information on Madara out of them. Anyways, you okay?” 

“Thanks to your fuinjutsu,” Han said. 

“Oh! That seal,” Narumi said, smacking his fist against the palm of his other hand. “I wondered what it was for. Glad I could help.” 

Han observed him stoically. “You’re the shinobi that Roshi encountered, then?” 

“Huh? You knew about that? Yeah, that’s me,” Narumi said. “I’m glad I caught up to you in time. I was gonna warn you about the Akatsuki. You might wanna consider meeting up with Roshi or one of the other jinchuuriki. Takigakure is somewhere around here, right? Maybe I should go looking for the Nanabi, while I’m at it—ah, shit, but it already took longer than I intended to find you! Say, if you happen to meet a girl named Fuu, would you mind helping her out? Since she’s a jinchuuriki too, and all.” 

He didn’t hold out much hope, but to his surprise, Han nodded. “As thanks for your assistance.” 

“Great! Since, y’know, the fate of the world depends on you guys not getting captured and all,” Narumi said, letting out a nervous laugh. Han’s eyes widened, and Narumi quickly went back over the conversation. “Oh, shit, didn’t I mention that? Well, if you do meet up with Roshi, he can explain! I told him the details already. Look out for Akatsuki, and if you really need help, come to Konoha—I’ve got to run!” 

Without giving Han a chance to respond, Narumi turned and ran back towards the border, heading back to Konoha as quickly as he could. He hadn’t intended to be gone for nearly this long, and it was going to take him a few more days to get back, even pushing himself. Hopefully no one had noticed his absence—he’d left a clone in his place and it hadn’t dispersed yet, but that wasn’t a fool-proof method. 

Oh, well. If all else failed, he’d claim that he’d visited Uzushio. Tsubame was always willing to cover for him, even now. 

A few days after he had encountered Han and the Akatsuki, Narumi slipped back into Konoha as if he had never left, neatly evading the patrol on the wall—Sasuke and Hinata were on patrol tonight, he noted with a grin—and returning to his small house on the outskirts of the village. The lights were on, which . . . wasn’t unusual, really. Narumi was always forgetting to turn them off. 

He let himself in through the window of his office, where his clone was absentmindedly scribbling out some ideas for more protective fuinjutsu projects. It looked up as he approached and saluted sloppily. “Hey boss, you’re back. Sakumo’s in the living room.” 

“Thanks,” Narumi said, before neatly dispatching the clone with a chop to the head. He took a moment to sort through the memories—a meeting with Shisui, long days in the office, dinners with Sakumo—before leaving the office. He grinned as he spotted Sakumo sitting on the porch with a pot of tea and padded across the living room to join him, leaning down to offer him a kiss. 

“Oh,” Sakumo hummed contentedly into the kiss. “You’re back. Tea?” 

“Sure, thanks,” Narumi said, accepting the offered tea. “How’d you know I was gone?” 

“Your clones don’t like to kiss me,” Sakumo said. 

Narumi blinked and went back over his memories. Sure enough, the most intimate the clone had been with Sakumo was a few touches to his arm. “Ha! You’re right. That’s funny, I wonder why?” 

“I thought you would know—they’re your clones. So, what have you been up to?” Sakumo asked. 

“A top-secret mission, of course!” Narumi declared. 

“From Shisui?” Sakumo said, blinking at him. “But then why the clone?” 

“This is a mission I assigned myself,” Narumi explained. 

“I see now,” Sakumo said. “Causing trouble?” 

“Getting people out of trouble, actually,” Narumi said. He polished off the last of his tea and then stretched out, resting his head on Sakumo’s thigh. “I had a run-in with the Akatsuki.” 

“The Akatsuki? Which ones?” Sakumo asked. 

“Two of the leaders, Konan and Yahiko,” Narumi said. “They were going after Han, the Gobi. Everything turned out fine, don’t worry.” 

“So they are targeting the jinchuuriki,” Sakumo sighed. “We’ll have to bring word of this to Shisui in the morning. Orochimaru hasn’t sent any missives recently.” 

“Don’t worry,” Narumi said. “That guy is way too slippery to get compromised. He’s probably having too much of a blast over there to send updates all the time.” 

Sakumo chuckled. “I never thought Orochimaru would take so well to spying. I think he’s treating it as an extended research opportunity. Most of his missives are full of research into the members’ jutsu instead of their plans. Kakashi has had his hands full managing the lab, going through his notes and running tests. At least their research will probably come in handy when it comes time to fight them.” 

Narumi sighed. “I was hoping to avoid it. I tried talking to Konan and Yahiko today . . . but they weren’t really interested in talking. I just—I wanted to prevent—"

He gritted his teeth and shut his eyes. A hand brushed gently through his hair. “We’ll prevent another war from happening,” Sakumo murmured. “Naruto and Minori—all of those kids—they won’t have to live through what we did.” 

Narumi opened his eyes and smiled up into Sakumo’s kind eyes. “Yeah,” he said, clasping Sakumo’s hand in his. “We’ll make sure of it.” 


	55. Chapter 55

It was hard to believe that three years had passed since Naruto left Konoha; the gates looked the same as they ever had, and the same chuunin who had seen him off greeted him as he walked into the village. As he stood in the middle of the street and looked around, he spotted countless stores and restaurants that he and his friends had frequented. The Hokage monument, however, was a testament to what had changed—Shisui’s face now stood next to Sakumo’s, gazing down at the village. 

“Well, you have fun,” Jiraiya said, already strolling away. 

“You’re not gonna see Shisui?” Naruto asked. 

Jiraiya waved a hand dismissively. “I’ll catch up with him in my own time. I don’t need you listening in on our conversation.” 

Naruto made a face at his back before heading in the direction of the administration building. The Academy students training in the yard watched curiously when he passed them, always interested to see what the actual shinobi were doing, hoping for a glimpse of the exciting tasks they would be given in the future. 

Naruto couldn’t help but snicker at the thought of the looks on their faces when they were introduced to D-ranks. 

The Administration building was bustling when he returned. He recognized more people than he thought he would; in his memories, the building was filled with unfamiliar adults, but now he found himself waving at people his age that he vaguely remembered from the Academy and around the village. Even Shikamaru was there, sitting at a desk and flipping through a clipboard. Shikamaru greeted him with a brief wave and a yawn as Naruto headed up to the Hokage’s office, where another familiar face waited. 

“Naruto,” Heiwa greeted, as if she wasn’t at all surprised to see him there. From how she was acting, you would think that Naruto had been gone for a day, not three years. “The Hokage is busy right now, but he should have time for a meeting in ten minutes, if you don’t mind waiting.” 

Naruto grinned at her. “What, three years and that’s all the greeting I get?” 

Heiwa rolled her eyes. “Hello, Naruto, it’s nice to see you again. Now, do you mind waiting?” 

“I’ll wait, I’ll wait,” Naruto said. He perched on her desk, his grin only growing as she glared at him. “So, what’s new?” 

“I’ve been busy,” Heiwa said, nodding towards the pile of paperwork waiting to the side of her desk. “Don’t disturb my papers, or I’ll make you spend the rest of the day sorting them for me.” 

“I won’t. C’mon, tell me what’s up,” he said. 

Heiwa sighed, but set her pen aside, as if recognizing she wouldn’t get any work done with him there. “As I’m sure she told you, Sakura’s been settling in well at the hospital, as part of the new medical fuinjutsu division. Sasuke and Hinata are both working for the military police. I’m sure you know Sasuke made jounin?” 

“Yeah, he told me. Ass,” Naruto muttered. “How was Rin’s wedding? I didn’t wanna miss it, but Jiraiya wouldn’t let me come back.” 

Heiwa smiled slightly. “It was nice. You would have liked it. Nawanuke didn’t even cause any trouble.” 

“Sounds boring,” Naruto said, snickering when she glared at him. 

The door opened, and Shisui peered out. “Oh, Naruto! I thought I heard the sounds of someone annoying my aide. Come on in, my last meeting just ended.” 

Naruto followed him in, standing in front of the desk as Shisui took a seat. As soon as Shisui was settled, the smile melted from his face. “The Akatsuki have started making definite moves against the jinchuuriki. Narumi has already intervened on behalf of one of them and warned a few more. We’re keeping an eye on things, but you need to be cautious, especially now that you aren’t on the move. It won’t take them long to realize that you’ve settled back in Konoha. They’ll be wary of attacking you while you’re in the village, but we know first-hand that they are capable of sneaking into the village. I want you to help Narumi with the seals for the village. He’s been working on various defenses, and he needs all the help he can get.” 

“Got it,” Naruto said, nodding. “Anything else?” 

“Not at the moment,” Shisui said. “Feel free to request a mission once you get settled in again—I’m sure your teammates will be happy to have you back. Now, if you don’t mind, I have a mountain of paperwork to conquer.” 

Naruto didn’t envy him that at all. He waved cheerfully at Shisui, who was already mournfully pulling over a small stack of papers, and went back outside. Heiwa was still there, and she looked up as he closed the door. 

“One other thing,” she said, as if their conversation hadn’t been interrupted. “Minori came back.” 

“Wait, for real? He’s back?” Naruto demanded. 

Heiwa nodded. “He’s having a house-warming party tonight. You should come.” 

“House-warming? Did sensei move, or something?” Naruto asked. 

Heiwa shook her head. “No, he has his own apartment. Here, I’ll give you the address; the party is supposed to start at six tonight.” 

Naruto accepted the scrap of paper she tore from a notebook, an address hastily scribbled on it, and shoved it into his pocket. “Thanks. I guess I’ll see you there?” 

Heiwa nodded and returned to her paperwork, a clear dismissal. Naruto headed out, waving to Shikamaru and Ino as he passed them on his way out. 

“Oh, Naruto!” Ino called, sliding off Shikamaru’s desk and grabbing Naruto’s arm. “There you are, I was waiting for you. Daddy wanted to see you when you came back.” 

“Sure,” Naruto said, allowing her to pull him out the door. “I wanted to talk to him anyways.” 

Ino tugged him relentlessly down the street, towards the flower shop. “You’re in luck, he’s not on duty today. You’re going to Minori’s party, right?” 

“Yeah, Heiwa told me about it,” Naruto said. 

“Great! We need more fun people at this party,” Ino said. “Neji, Heiwa, and Sasuke wouldn’t let us have any fun! You want the party to be fun, right?” 

“Well, yeah,” Naruto said, no longer entirely sure where this conversation was going. 

“Then you’ve got to help me buy drinks and snacks once you’re done talking to Daddy, I can’t carry it all myself,” Ino insisted. 

“Yeah, sure—hang on, you just want a pack-mule!” Naruto exclaimed, jabbing a finger at her accusingly. “I’m not gonna let you drag me all over the place to carry your stuff.” 

Ino rolled her eyes. “Don’t be such a baby, Naruto, it’s for a good cause. Unless you want Minori to have a boring house-warming party? And it’s kind of like your welcome home party, too! Do you want to have a boring party?” 

“Uh, I don’t really care,” Naruto began. 

“Yes, you do,” Ino said firmly. “Now hurry up and finish your talk so that we can get all the shopping done before the party.” 

She yanked him into the flower shop without further ado; judging by Inoichi’s unsurprised expression, Naruto figured this was all part of the plan. 

“Hey, Ino’s dad!” 

Inoichi shook his head, smiling fondly. “Welcome back, Naruto. I’d heard you were on your way home.” 

“Yep! And I brought your book and everything,” Naruto said, removing a storage scroll from his pocket and placing it on the counter. “It, uh, was kind of a pain to carry around on its own,” he explained. 

Inoichi shook his head and pushed the scroll back towards Naruto. “Keep it. Think of it as a congratulations present.” 

“Uh, congratulations? For what?” Naruto spared a moment to wonder if he’d been given a field promotion to jounin, which would have made his day, but Shisui would have told him if that was the case. 

“Why, for completing the Konoha Hospital Psychology course,” Inoichi said, and reached under the counter and pulled out a roll of paper. Naruto unfurled it, his eyes skimming over the paper once, briefly, before he read it more thoroughly. 

“Wait, what? Psychology course?” Naruto echoed. “I didn’t sign up for this. Did I? I’m pretty sure I would remember that.” 

“I signed you up,” Inoichi said, smiling at Naruto in clear amusement. “Don’t tell me you never wondered about all those essays I told you to write.” 

Naruto sheepishly ran a hand through his hair. “I just thought that was you being weird, I didn’t think it was for a class!” 

“Well, it was, and you passed with flying colors,” Inoichi assured him. “And, on that note, I also asked you here to offer you a job.” 

Naruto wrinkled his nose. “You mean with you, in T&I? I mean, thanks, but that’s not really . . . my thing.” 

“Not quite,” Inoichi said. “With me, but at the hospital. In the psychology department. It’s a small department, still. We only started it around fifteen years ago, and we’re always looking for new staff.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever been,” Naruto admitted. He knew that Minori had gone, but he’d never felt the need. “I mean, what do you do, exactly?” 

“We talk to people. We help people,” Inoichi said, and evidently he saw something in Naruto’s expression, because he continued, “You’d have to go through some additional training first, of course. Here—my office, I’m typically there on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Come by, and we can get you sorted.” 

Naruto accepted the scrap of paper. “Thanks,” he said. He’d thought about helping people—people like Minori—but it hadn’t actually occurred to him that there was a whole job revolving around that. He mulled over the idea as he said his goodbyes to Inoichi and wandered out of the shop, papers safely stored away with Inoichi’s book. 

Ino latched onto his arm the moment he stepped through the door. “So, did you accept the job?” 

“Gah, get off, you’re like a leech!” Naruto protested, futilely trying to shake her off. “And yeah, I guess, he told me to come by his office later. Jeez, do you tell each other everything?” 

“Not everything. He just wanted my opinion on you,” Ino said, rolling her eyes. “And I told him you were a sickening do-gooder who would be amazing at it. So you have me to thank for all future paychecks. You can start paying me back by holding my bags today.” 

“Don’t you have Shikamaru for that?” Naruto asked. 

“He’s at work still, dummy,” Ino said, as she pulled him into the first shop and shoved a shopping basket at him. “Now hold that and let me do my thing.” 

Ino approached shopping like a mission; she went exactly where she needed to go, no dawdling or getting distracted, and pulled out exactly what coupons she needed the moment they got to the counter to check out. If he hadn’t been the one currently serving as her pack mule, Naruto would have been impressed by the way the total dropped with each successive coupon. 

After the third store, his hands were starting to go numb from holding so many heavy bags, the plastic handles biting into his skin. “Please, please tell me we’re done,” he groaned.

Ino surveyed the bags, hands on her hips, and gave a satisfied nod. “This should do,” she said. “Now, to Minori’s apartment! I promised to help him get set up before everyone arrived.” 

To his surprise, Ino led the way not to one of the many neighborhoods or apartment blocks in Konoha, but to the street where Naruto usually bought his mission supplies. She approached a blacksmith shop but didn’t go inside, instead heading up the stairs at the side of the building to the apartment above the shop. 

“Uh, Ino? Is this the right place?” 

“Of course it is,” Ino said, before knocking firmly on the door. 

It swung open only a few moments later to reveal an unfamiliar boy about their age. Naruto opened his mouth to apologize—clearly, Ino’d gotten the address wrong or something—but then the boy stepped aside. “You must be Minori’s friends.” 

There was a loud thud from inside. “My friends? Who is it, Kintsugi?” 

The boy huffed in amusement. “How would I know? I’ve never met them before. They’re blonde.” 

“Did you forget I was coming already?” Ino complained, as she grabbed one of the bags from Naruto and walked into the apartment. “I brought drinks and snacks and everything, and this is the thanks I get?” 

“Ino! You’re here already?” Minori stepped into view, grinning cheerfully. His eyes widened when he spotted Naruto. 

“Minori, hey,” Naruto said, lifting a hand to wave only to realize that he was still holding groceries. “Uh, where should I put this stuff?” 

Minori flew forwards and hurtled into Naruto, making him drop the groceries and nearly sending them flying over the balcony. “Nakkun, you’re here!” Minori laughed, pulling back just enough to grin up at him. “I thought you were still traveling!” 

“I just got home!” Naruto said, affectionately punching Minori’s arm. “You didn’t think I was gonna miss out on the Team 7 reunion, did you?” 

“No way!” Minori laughed, returning Naruto’s punch with a headbutt to Naruto’s chest. Naruto shoved him away, taking the opportunity to ruffle his hair as Minori squawked in protest and tried to escape. 

“You’re still a shrimp!” Naruto laughed, throwing an arm around Minori’s shoulders and dragging him closer to mess up his hair even more. 

Minori flailed, elbowing Naruto in the gut hard, but not hard enough to make Naruto let go. “Just because you went and became a giant! What was Jiraiya-jiji feeding you?” 

“It’s because I drink my—whoa!” Naruto tried to escape from a waving fist that was getting a little too close to his nose for comfort and nearly toppled over the balcony. He flailed the one arm that wasn’t still holding on to Minori, determined that if he went over, Minori was going over too. 

“Jeez, you two, what are you doing?” 

Naruto’s hand smacked against a support just as a hand grabbed the front of his shirt. Sakura’s expression as she helped him right himself was somewhere between amused and bemused. “Could you two not go a single day without trying to do something dumb?” 

“Nope!” Naruto declared. 

Sakura shook her head, but she was grinning. “I can’t believe I left my cushy research position for you dorks.” 

Naruto threw his free arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug, one of MInori’s arms coming around to hug her as well. “You know you missed us.” 

“For better or for worse,” Sakura sighed, even as her arm tightened around him. 

“Are you guys gonna stand there hugging all day, or are you gonna put those drinks away?” Ino called. 

“Yeah, yeah, we’re coming, calm down!” Naruto yelled. He ruffled Minori’s hair one last time and squeezed Sakura tighter before letting go and picking up the drinks, which thankfully hadn’t broken when he’d dropped them. 

“Come on in,” Minori said, gesturing ahead. “We’ve got a familiar face here! Or, kind of familiar, I guess you guys didn’t see much of her. And also Kintsugi!” 

Beaming from ear to ear, Minori seized Naruto and Sakura by the hand and pulled them into the apartment. He looked better than he had in those days before he’d left Konoha. In his mind Naruto had always seen Minori as he’d been then, so thin and pale that he looked like a strong wind might blow him away, but he looked good—better than Naruto had been expecting. The Capital had clearly treated him well. 

Sakura, too, looked good after her time spent in Uzushio. Her pink hair was still bleached slightly paler from the sun, and her nose and shoulders were sprinkled with freckles. She’d even pierced her ears, and now sported two studs with a green gem in each ear. She caught him looking and smiled. “Like them?” she said. “Su gave them to me as a going-away present.” 

“Oooh, a going-away present. Fancy,” Naruto teased. 

Sakura rolled her eyes and elbowed him. “Shut up, Naruto.” 

“Yes, Hokage-sama, anything you say, Hokage-sama,” Naruto said, bowing exaggeratedly before ducking away from her playful punch and escaping to the kitchen. Ino had abandoned the snacks and drinks in favor of helping another girl hold up a string of small lanterns while the boy who had answered the door attached them to the ceiling. Minori was already in the kitchen, putting drinks into the fridge and occasionally glancing over his shoulder at the trio putting up lights. Naruto opened up the bags and started unloading the snacks onto the counter. 

“Nice place,” he said. “Why’d ya decide to get your own place?” 

“Kintsugi needed a roommate,” Minori said. “It is nice, isn’t it? I think it’ll look great once we have the lanterns up. It’ll be like a festival!” 

“Pretty small festival,” Naruto laughed, taking a look around the room. The apartment was a decent size, but if any more people showed up, it would start getting cramped quickly. 

This was soon proved when, not long after the lights were strung up and the drinks all put away, the door opened and Shikamaru and Choji walked in, Choji bearing even more food to join the snacks Ino had brought. Heiwa appeared around an hour later with Neji. Naruto couldn’t help but scowl at him; he knew that Heiwa and Hinata had made up with him, but he still didn’t really like the guy that much. 

Tenten and Lee weren’t able to make it, since they were both out on a mission, but Kiba appeared once the sun had set, dragging Sai and Shino in his wake. 

“Damn,” he said, as he took in Shikamaru, Heiwa, and Neji discussing work near the door, Sakura, Ino, Minori, and Yuzuki talking in a corner, and Naruto awkwardly trying to make conversation with Kintsugi and Choji, neither of whom he knew very well. “This is fucking sad. Minori, you call this a party?” 

Minori just laughed. “I’ve never thrown a party before!” 

“Yeah, it shows,” Kiba snorted, as he dumped a boombox on the counter and started rifling through tapes. “You’re lucky I know what I’m doing. Choji, dude, go save Shikamaru from shop talk. He’s gotta be dying over there. And Naruto, go annoy Heiwa or something. If you don’t separate her and Neji, they’re gonna start making out, or worse, and no one wants to see that.” 

“You’re disgusting, Kiba,” Heiwa snapped. 

“Ooh baby, ooh baby, talk political reforms to me,” Kiba taunted, his grin spreading from ear to ear when Heiwa flushed in anger. He turned his attention away from her before she could yell at him, focusing instead on Kintsugi. “Yo, roommate, please tell me you don’t have garbage taste in music.” 

Kintsugi reached over and picked up one of the tapes, which was labelled with some band name Naruto wasn’t familiar with. “No, but you do.” 

Kiba barked out a laugh. “Fair enough, dude. Here, how’s this?” 

The door opened again, and this time Shin tumbled through the door, dragging Nawanuke along by the hand. “Look who I brought!” he cheered, as Heiwa audibly groaned. “Sai invited me, hope you don’t mind.” 

“Can I go now?” Nawanuke said, trying in vain to shake his hand free of Shin’s. 

Shin snatched up a soda and shoved it at Nawanuke. “Chill out and have a drink before you give yourself another ulcer.” 

“For the last fucking time, it wasn’t from stress, I don’t need to ‘chill out—’” 

“Stress is one of the leading causes of death in Konoha,” Sai contributed, helpfully. 

Shin gasped exaggeratedly and shook Nawanuke’s shoulders. “Do you hear that, Nawa? You have to stay at the party, or you could die!” 

“Fuck off, I’m not even stressed! And if I was, this party would make me even more stressed!” 

Naruto edged away from their conversation. He had vague intentions of joining Minori and Sakura in their conversation with Ino and Yuzuki, but quickly changed trajectories once he overheard them talking about hair or clothes or something—he didn’t stick around to find out exactly what. 

He ended up next to Heiwa and Neji, who thankfully weren’t making out. “Naruto,” Heiwa greeted, in her customary brisk manner. “I had something I wanted to discuss with you.” 

Naruto wracked his brains for anything he might have done to make Heiwa irritated with him, beyond the usual. “Uh, okay?” 

“I found some fuinjutsu notes I wanted your input on,” she continued. 

“Oh, okay!” Naruto said. “Cool, d’you have them?” 

“Yes, I carry priceless journals written by the Nidaime with me everywhere I go, especially to parties where some idiot will probably spill beer on them,” Heiwa said, rolling her eyes. “It’s at my house.” 

“Wait, from the Nidaime? Don’t tell me it’s the Hiraishin,” Naruto said, half-joking, only to fall silent when Heiwa gave him a quelling look. “Holy shit, it is? I have got to go to your house more often.” 

“Just don’t go spreading it around,” Heiwa said. 

Naruto waved his hands. “No worries, I’ll keep my mouth shut! Huh, I wonder if the pervy sage knows where—uh, the Yondaime’s notes are.” 

Heiwa nodded thoughtfully. “Good idea. You should speak with him before he leaves, and then we can meet. Typically, the weekends work best for me, as long as I’m not on a mission.” 

“Sounds good to me. My schedule is still kind of up in the air,” Naruto admitted. 

Heiwa nodded in understanding. “Do you have a job lined up? Itachi was considering starting up a new fuinjutsu team in R&D, but he doesn’t have the time to give it the attention it really needs.” 

“I’ve actually kind of got something,” Naruto said. Heiwa’s eyebrows rose slightly in surprise. “What’s that look for? I can find a job on my own, y’know!” 

“I thought you’d prefer to focus on nothing but missions, to be honest,” Heiwa said. “Plenty of jounin and chuunin don’t have another job.” 

“I mean, I’m still going to go on missions, of course,” Naruto said. “I haven’t really figured out how it’s going to work out—I’ve gotta go talk to Inoichi.” 

Heiwa frowned. “Interrogation?” 

“Nah, at the hospital. Psychology department. I’ve, uh, kinda studied it a bunch, since—well, you know.” 

Both of them glanced over at Minori, who was smiling happily as he talked to Sakura, clearly trying to demonstrate something judging by how much he was waving his hands around. A loud knock on the door made him jump, his smile momentarily faltering. 

“I got it,” Naruto called, but Minori shook his head and left the group of girls. 

“It’s my party, Nakkun,” he scolded. 

The knock pounded on the door again. “Open up!” a voice ordered. “Military Police!” 

Minori, in the middle of reaching for the door, paused for a moment; Naruto reached past him and opened the door without giving him a chance to protest. 

“Hey, what’s the big idea—” Naruto trailed off upon seeing who was on the other side of the door. 

Sasuke smirked at him. “We received a noise complaint.” 

Naruto punched Sasuke’s arm. “Jerk! I thought you were serious.” 

Sasuke shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “I could be.” 

“Yeah, right,” Naruto said, rolling his eyes. 

“Welcome home, Naruto, Minori,” Hinata said, offering each of them a small box. “I wasn’t sure what you would like, but I thought something like this . . .” 

Naruto eagerly pulled off the wrapping to reveal a box of high-end snacks, the kind he never bothered buying even though he could technically afford it on a chuunin’s salary. “Nice! Thanks, Hinata!” 

Minori pulled Hinata into a hug. “Thanks, Hina-chan. Everyone, Hina-chan and Sakkun are here!” 

“I told you not to call me that,” Sasuke muttered. Minori just grinned and hugged Sasuke as if he’d also handed over a gift and spoken warm words of welcome. 

“Come on in,” Minori said, once he’d released a rather disgruntled Sasuke. “Hina-chan, you should meet Yuzuchii!” 

Naruto ended up leaning against the wall between Sasuke and Neji, holding a soda that someone had given him. “So, what’s been up with you?” 

“Military Police business,” Sasuke said simply. “Missions. The usual.” 

“C’mon, give me more details than that!” Naruto cajoled. 

“Hm. We have a Hyuuga on our squad now. It’s terrible.” Neji shot Sasuke a glare; Sasuke took a sip of his soda, looking smug. 

“Arrested anybody interesting?” 

Sasuke considered this for a moment and then shrugged. “Two days ago I had to arrest Kakashi, Obito, and Asuma for disturbing the peace at four in the morning. They decided to get drunk to celebrate Asuma’s date with Kurenai.” 

“Asuma-sensei is dating Kurenai? Ha! I told you, Shikamaru!” Ino cheered. 

“That was a week ago. They weren’t dating yet,” Shikamaru said. “Doesn’t count.” 

Ino draped herself over Shikamaru’s back. “You’re just jealous that I’m better at information gathering,” she teased, poking his cheek with one finger. 

“Better at making assumptions, maybe,” Shikamaru said.

A crash momentarily silenced the conversation; Naruto turned around to find Nawanuke draped over Shin’s arms, their sodas fallen on the floor. Shin grinned and gave them a thumbs up with the hand that wasn’t holding onto Nawanuke’s shoulders. “Nice catch! Clear a space on the couch—don’t worry, he’s fine—” 

As Shin dragged Nawanuke over to the couch, Sai pulled out a brush. “Let’s draw dicks on his face.” 

Somehow, they all ended up clustered around the couch, at first to snicker as Sai drew too-realistic dicks on Nawanuke and then to make fun of some terrible shinobi drama that was playing on TV. 

“Oh, Hokage-who-is-definitely-not-modeled-on-the-Yondaime-sama, our love surpasses villages, and also common sense!” Ino crooned, dramatically falling against Shikamaru and nearly kicking Nawanuke off the couch. 

“But Raikage-sama, our shinobi will never understand, probably because we were at war in the last episode. And also might still be at war; it was kind of unclear,” Shikamaru said dryly. 

“But Hokage-sama, you don’t understand . . . I’m pregnant with your baby, even though we couldn’t possibly have had time to have sex in the few episodes we were together!” 

“I’m just that virile, I guess,” Shikamaru said, and they all hooted and howled as on-screen the actors shared a passionate kiss, waves crashing against a beach that was definitely not near Uzushio, even though that was where they were supposed to be.

Naruto rolled his eyes and looked over his shoulder to complain to the nearest person, only to spot Sasuke and Minori sitting outside. They didn’t seem to be saying much. Curious, Naruto got up from the couch and wandered over to them.

They both looked up as he walked over, and Sasuke wordlessly got to his feet and went back inside. Naruto watched him go for a moment before sitting down next to Minori, letting his legs dangle over the side of the balcony. “What was that about?” 

“Oh, nothing,” Minori said, giving Naruto a secretive smile. 

“Was he being a dick? I’ll punch him in the face,” Naruto said, maybe a little too eagerly. 

Minori, though, just laughed quietly and leaned against Naruto. “I was just thanking him for what he did. Back then.” 

Naruto nodded and tried to sort out his thoughts; part of him was still mad at Sasuke for what he’d done, although it had faded from the fury he’d felt three years ago. But he had to admit that Minori looked better for it. “You, uh, enjoyed it there?” 

Minori glanced over his shoulder and smiled, although Naruto couldn’t have said what he was looking at. “I did. But it’s good to be back. I did miss it here, and I missed you, and Sakura, and everyone.” 

Minori kicked his heels against the balcony, still smiling as he gazed up at the sky, still not completely dark even though the sun had already set. 

“It doesn’t . . . bother you? Being back?” Naruto asked, unsure if Minori would answer and unsure if he even wanted those answers. “I mean, you don’t have to say if you don’t want, but you can talk to me. If you do.” 

Minori stilled, for a moment, and looked at Naruto in surprise before breaking out another wide grin. “Wow, Nakkun, you sure did grow up, huh?” 

Naruto scowled, his cheeks burning, and punched Minori’s arm. “Jeez, I was just offering!” 

“Help!” Minori pleaded through his laughter. “Help, Sacchan, Nakkun is bullying me!” 

Someone cleared their throat behind them; Naruto turned, eager to egg one of their friends into teasing Minori, only to find Itachi staring down at them. 

“Minori, Naruto,” he said, greeting them with a nod, and then doing the same to their friends still in the apartment. “I apologize for the interruption.” 

“Senpai? What happened?” Sakura asked. 

“I have a summons from the Hokage,” Itachi said, his eyes skimming over them. “Sakura, Naruto, Minori, Heiwa, Neji, Sasuke, Hinata, report to the Hokage. The rest of you, on standby.”


End file.
